Gloves and hats of the Oakland Athletics in the dugout during the eighth inning against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre. John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports

A's call food served to minor leaguers 'totally unacceptable' after photo posted online

By Erin Walsh | Last updated 6/2/21

A photo showing food served to some Oakland Athletics minor leaguers went viral on Tuesday, drawing references to the Fyre Festival that allegedly offered sandwich bread with sliced cheese for dinner.

Pictures of the food were shared through a Twitter account run by Advocates for Minor Leaguers, an organization fighting to help minor leaguers get fair pay and better working conditions.

Players in the Oakland A’s organization shared these photos of their recent post-game meals.

No employer would serve these meals to employees they care about. Why are the A’s serving them to their future Major Leaguers? pic.twitter.com/cIFqiPg6iX
— Advocates for Minor Leaguers (@MiLBAdvocates) June 1, 2021

In reply to the tweet, Athletics president Dave Kaval called the food "totally unacceptable."

This was totally unacceptable. When we found out several weeks ago we terminated the third party vendor. We apologize to our players, staff, and coaches. We will redouble our efforts to provide the best options for our team at every level. https://t.co/yPzVWiCx1D
— Dave Kaval (@DaveKaval) June 2, 2021

The A's also released a statement (h/t ESPN):

"Several weeks ago, we were made aware of the postgame meals being served to players in our Minor League system. Those options were completely unacceptable and by no means meet our quality standards. We immediately ended our relationship with that third party vendor."

The first photo was from May 18 when the A's Double-A affiliate was on the road in Texas, according to ESPN. The second photo is believed to be more recent from a different A's minor-league affiliate.

The photos depict the difficult conditions minor leaguers have to deal with every day. Most players even have to work two or more jobs because they don't get paid enough money from baseball alone.

Several players past and present called out the A's for the awful food they've been serving their minor leaguers, including Adam Jones, who spent 11 years with the Baltimore Orioles.

I got friends in prison that eat better than this. And before the non athletes say “suck it up, you’re in the minors” these guys are ATHLETES!! Athletes require proper fuel. This ain’t it. Not asking for Ruth Chris but damn!! https://t.co/SGcDKcf38V
— 10 (@SimplyAJ10) June 2, 2021

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