The Boston Red Sox are among at least 17 major teams that have committed to paying their minor-league players $400 per week through the end of August, a source confirmed Friday afternoon. The commitment will keep players compensated through what would have been the end of the minor-league season.

Alex Speier of the Boston Globe first reported the news.

In March, all 30 major league teams committed to paying their minor leaguers $400 per week in April and May with baseball shut down due to the coronavirus pandemic. With the calendar soon turning to June, teams can make their own decisions about whether or not they’ll compensate players.

The Houston Astros, Miami Marlins, Minnesota Twins, San Diego Padres, Kansas City Royals and Seattle Mariners are promising payments through August, and the Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Mets, Chicago White Sox, Tampa Bay Rays, Texas Rangers, Baltimore Orioles, Atlanta Braves, San Francisco Giants and Arizona Diamondbacks have pledged to do so through at least June. The White Sox are even providing stipends to 25 minor leaguers who were recently released.

The Philadelphia Phillies also plan to continue allowances through June, but likely at a reduction from the $400 per week rate. The amount is to be determined, the team said.

Oakland is the only team so far that has said it will stop paying minor leaguers at the end of the month.

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The allowances have been a pay raise for many players, with minimum salaries ranging from $290 per week at Class A to $502 per week at Triple-A over the five-month season.

MLB and the players’ association are negotiating terms to start the major league season later in the summer, but it seems likely there will not be a minor league season.

The Red Sox have not announced if they’ll be furloughing or laying off any non-uniformed employees due to the financial implications of the pandemic. Some teams, like the Angels, Athletics, Marlins and Rays, have furloughed significant amounts of their staffs and have given significant pay cuts to other employees.

The Red Sox, like every other MLB team, committed to pay its baseball operations staff through the end of May.

THE RED SOX have released 22 minor leaguers, including Nick Lovullo, the son of Arizona Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo.

Lovullo, an infielder, spent parts of the last four seasons with the Portland Sea Dogs, including 21 games last year. He also played 43 games for Class A Salem and 15 games for Triple-A Pawtucket.

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Three others who played for the Sea Dogs last year – pitchers Matthew Gorst and Dylan Thompson and outfielder Keith Curcio – were also released. Gorst was the most prominent of the three, posting a 2.87 ERA in 129 minor league games, primarily as a reliever. He pitched for Portland and Pawtucket last year, with a combined 4.21 ERA in 62 innings.

Teams across the majors have released some of their minor leaguers the last two days, with the 2020 minor league season unlikely to be played because of the coronavirus pandemic.

DODGERS: David Price, the pitcher acquired from the Boston Red Sox in February, has pledged to donate $1,000 to each Dodgers minor leaguer in June. The aid will go to every player in the farm system not on the 40-man roster – a little over 200 in all, according to two people with knowledge of the situation.

Price, 34, was scheduled to make $32 million in 2020 before the coronavirus outbreak suspended the major league season. He is under contract for $32 million in 2021 before becoming a free agent.

DIAMONDBACKS: The team has laid off or furloughed about one quarter of the its employees because of lost revenue due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Remaining staff will take pay cuts that average less than 15%, with the team’s highest earners losing a bigger percentage.

The baseball operations department was largely unaffected. Many of the jobs lost were on the business side, particularly in ticket sales.


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