Idaho politicians have stake in Major League Baseball, should speak up

A recent Statesman editorial on government officials’ input on Major League Baseball decisions ignores a few critical facts.

The editorial board criticized Gov. Brad Little, Lt. Gov. Janice McGeachin and U.S. Rep. Mike Simpson, R-Idaho, for encouraging MLB officials to reconsider a decision that could downsize its minor league teams by 25 percent. The move would affect the Idaho Falls Chukars, as well as about 40 other teams across the nation.

In its criticism, which centers on the fact that government shouldn’t be involved in private business dealings, the board sidesteps the fact that government is already deeply intertwined with Major League Baseball, both on a taxpayer level and a policy level. MLB has an antitrust exemption, making the federal government inextricably linked to the sport.

And in 2018, Congress included the Save America’s Pastime Act in an omnibus spending bill. The act exempts Minor League Baseball from paying its players minimum wage. That obscenely low pay rate for MiLB players of $5,000 a year the board cited as an example of why baseball is bloated and unsustainable? Congress had a hand in cementing that reality for hundreds of baseball players — players who now struggle to afford to play the game they love. Meanwhile, MLB continues to see record-breaking annual revenues in the billions, and teams are offering jaw-dropping multiyear contracts to a handful of star players to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars. Lack of money isn’t MLB’s problem.

The editorial also fails to address the economic impact of the Chukars for the Idaho Falls community: $105,800 in sales tax revenue, $189,000 to buy food from local companies, five full-time jobs and 80 to 90 part-time jobs, to name a few points outlined by the Post Register. Idaho Falls has had a professional baseball team since 1939. This isn’t a rec league. This is a team that has produced high-octane players, like 2015 World Series MVP Salvador Pérez and 2013 American League Rookie of the Year Wil Myers. If a national company in any other industry were discussing shutting down its Idaho branch that had been open for 80 years, would the editorial board object to our elected officials joining a bipartisan effort to ask them to reconsider?

Taxpayers also have a stake in these discussions. The city of Idaho Falls paid $2 million for Melaleuca Field from its reserve funds in 2006. Whether or not taxpayer dollars have a place in stadiums is its own debate, and an important one, but as long as our money is paying for these facilities, we and the people we elect should have a voice in talks over the future of these teams.

There are plenty of things to criticize about the business of baseball and government involvement. But if we’re going to have this discussion, let’s start with the reality of the situation: Government is already involved, and these letters are the least egregious example.