Will the Yankees, long known as a “class” organization, lead the way in recognizing this is about people’s livelihoods, more than games not played?
The Yankees, at the moment and in the wake of MLB’s calendar changing announcement, are scrambling to sort through several decisions that need to be made yesterday.
First and foremost, what to do with their players? Does camp remain open, and if it is, are players required to be there – or can a player return home or maybe take a few days on the beach in Florida?
Yankees: Who Gets Paid And Who Doesn’t
What about their minor league players who only get paid during the season in which their league is in action? No games – no pay.
Do the Yankees do the “right thing” by paying them due to unforeseen circumstances?
Or, what about the ton of players the Yankees signed as non-roster players with an invite to Spring Training, at least one of whom (Rosell Herrera) is slated to make the Yankees team. Is he to be left floating in limbo somewhere?
But we’re only scratching the surface of those affected.
Yankees Peripheral Staff
The Yankees have already sent their scouts home as a precaution against incessant travel to parts unknown. Though it hasn’t been announced, will their paychecks continue to arrive on schedule – or are the scouts subject to the no work-no pay rule?
What about Yankee employees who operate the phones and ticket booths at Yankee Stadium? Will they be placed on paid leave or furloughed until, as the Commissioner said about the season, “until further notice”?
There’s a charter plane that will be sitting idle on a runway somewhere, too. And with that, a pilot and crew will be jetting the team nowhere. Does the team see to it they’ll receive regular paychecks?
Yankees Supporting Cast
The Yankees will lose a minimum of seven home dates as things stand now.
Concession stands will be shuttered. Security personnel, ushers, ticket processors, in the stands vendors, off-duty cops…
Wait, there’s more: groundskeepers, scoreboard operators, ticket scalpers, batboys, mascots, chefs, cleaning crews – all with no work – and therefore no income.
Will the Yankees, individually or as an organization, take a cue from NBA All-Star Kevin Love, who donated $100,000 to offset the lost pay for these workers?
Mark Cuban of the Dallas Mavericks was the first team owner to promise wages to arena staff, though he has not yet figured out the specifics.
And therein lies the point. Work out the specifics later. For now, just identify the commitment as a way to ease the minds of those suddenly facing a loss of income.
Yankees: Follow The Leader Or Be The Leader
Is there a Kevin Love on the Yankees? Or maybe three or four? Is Hal Steinbrenner not in the same league as Mark Cuban? – surely he is.
There is no protocol manual to follow in the extraordinary conditions we find ourselves in today.
But the community of professional sports leagues can (and already is) writing one for the future.
Every league, every team, every player, and every owner is in a position to borrow ideas as well as to create plans designed to alleviate the economic burden suffered by some more than others.
Being The Yankees
The Yankees are in a position to set the pace for Major League Baseball as an organization able and willing to be “The Yankees.”
An organization perceived to have a vision that extends beyond its front office and 25-man roster.
And on down to locate employees without a voice, who are just as if not more affected by this interruption in their lives –
All the Yankees need to do is be the class organization they’ve always been. Standing by for action…
Baseball, it is said, is only a game. True. And the Grand Canyon is only a hole in Arizona. Not all holes, or games, are created equal.
