Finding a place to live in your home city

Finding a place to live in your home city is not the easiest thing to do in minor league baseball. Many times you are not sure what team you are going to make so you have no opportunity to make plans. There are usually two different options: an apartment or a host family. Host families are usually in the lower levels and are even morecommon in short season leagues where 3 month leases are hard to find.

When you finally arrive in your city you have about 3 days to find a place. If your team has host families then you simply are given one, but if you are getting an apartment it is up to you. The problem is that you don’t have your car in the city yet; after all you just found out where you were going to be 2 days ago. Many apartment complexes require a background check, this of course takes time. So even if you find a place many times you can not just move in.

If you are given the choice between either a host family or an apartment, there are many factors to think about. Host families already have their power, water, cable etc. hooked up. In an apartment these are your own responsibilities. Even worse is the possibilly that you may get moved to another team and all of these bills are in your name and you are not there to pay them. With a host family these conflicts do not exist. Another deterent to an apartment is the cost, since after the initial lease you have a security deposit, then all of your bills. So many times the host family option is much cheaper.

There are advantages to an apartment to think about as well. Many times in an apartment you can have more fun because the entire team is in the same complex. This makes it like a dorm and allows everyone to hang out throughout the day. Also if you do not have a car then finding a ride to the game is much easier if the entire team lives in the same place. Lastly an apartment is your place and you have your own rules. Some host family situations can be very difficult for players to deal with.
Your baseball pro, Steve Holm

P.S. As host family, we have guidelines from the San Jose Giants management….no girlfriends or pets allowed! Host Mom, Jean