They were sleeping in cars. Sleeping in bathtubs. They had broken air conditioners. They had multiple teammates crammed into a one-bedroom apartment. Restless nights due to loss of sleep. These were the experiences of many minor leaguers before Major League Baseball implemented a housing policy.
Austin Byler, a former Arizona Diamondbacks prospect, recalls the struggles to find adequate housing during his pro career. "During my first year in Missoula, Montana, for Short-Season A Ball, we had to find our own housing. Most of the guys rented an apartment and crammed four to seven guys in a two-bedroom apartment," Byler said. "My apartment consisted of seven guys living in two bedrooms with no food. Simply four air mattresses spread throughout the apartment."
For decades, Major League Baseball didn't have a housing policy to help their minor leaguers find adequate accommodations for the season.
"It was really challenging during my first season because we did not know what to do, had no idea who each other was and who we would be living with, so it caused a great deal of stress going into your first season of professional baseball," Byler said.
Countless other minor leaguers experienced the same situation Byler did. Chicago Cubs pitching prospect Max Bain recalls trying to find housing in his first professional season. "It was incredibly stressful finding housing. Not a ton of affordable options in South Bend," Bain said. "To add to that, we were given assignments two days prior to leaving Arizona and we were told we had three nights in a team hotel. So we had five days to sign a lease with most of the process happening remotely, all while opening day was approaching".
These experiences rang true for almost all minor leaguers, no matter what organization they played for. It is widely known that poor-quality housing is associated with a variety of negative health outcomes, including chronic diseases, injury, and poor mental health. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation found that healthy homes promote good physical and psychological health.
Minor leaguers were experiencing what many humans, unfortunately, experience daily. The impact of unstable housing and inadequate living conditions. These factors always tend to lead to increased stress and take a toll on humans' mental well-being.
“So we had five days to sign a lease with most of the process happening remotely, all while opening day was approaching".
The hope is that many of these stories will become less frequent as Major League Baseball passed a rule and owners announced a new Minor League Housing Policy at the end of last season. The rule states that teams must provide more than 90 percent of assigned minor league players across every level with furnished housing accommodations at no expense to the players.
This should significantly impact a player's development and personal mental and physical well-being. "This is one of the best changes Major League Baseball has made for their minor leaguers," Byler said. "Providing efficient housing to athletes enhances their quality of life, routines, and overall mental well-being."
Routines are huge to player development. They are crucial to performance as well. "They now have a safe and healthy place to live where they can focus on their development and competition," Byler said. Having a foundation they can return to after every game gives them the feeling of security at the end of the day.
Bain felt the same way as he got ready for his next minor league season with the South Bend Cubs.
"Less outside stressors allow for significantly better recovery. It allows for the privilege of focus," Bain said. "It allows us to sleep easier at night. The places we have now are far above what we expected. We're incredibly fortunate, and I think that will show on the field."
It will be interesting to see the impact that adequate housing has on the player's performance. The new housing policy has the opportunity to provide more consistency and positive mental health for the players. We could see more production on the field and the humans behind the players have a more positive state of mind not just when they compete but in everyday life.
It is a significant first step by Major League Baseball in addressing the needs of the humans behind the athlete. Realizing there is more to a player than their performances on the field or the numbers on the back of a baseball card.
These changes have the opportunity to result in more production on the field and a positive state of mind for the players, not just in competition but in everyday life. The new housing policy might also be a good case study on the importance of and the impact of high-quality housing for humans more broadly.
"I am a big fan of the upcoming changes," Byler said. "It will drastically positively affect today's game."