Forty minor league baseball teams may lose their Major League Baseball affiliation after the end of the 2020 season, according to J.J. Cooper of Baseball America (h/t ESPN).

The current Professional Baseball Agreement between MLB and the minor league clubs expires at the end of next season. The restructuring would be part of a new PBA beginning in 2021.

MLB provided a statement to David Waldstein of the New York Times about its ongoing talks:

"We are in discussions with the owners of the Minor League teams to reorganize elements of the system with the goal of improving the working conditions of minor league players, including upgrading the facilities to Major League standards, increasing player compensation, reducing travel time between affiliates for road games, improving transportation and hotel accommodations, increasing the number of off days, and providing better geographical affiliations between the MLB clubs and affiliates."

The 40 teams that would lose affiliations would join a "Dream League," per Cooper, who described it as follows: "Players who go undrafted would have the option of playing in the Dream League (or going to independent leagues). The Dream League would be a joint MLB-MiLB venture, but in essence, it would be a quasi-independent league where the clubs would field teams of undrafted players."

Cooper also reported that MLB and the minor league clubs have taken a break in negotiations until after the conclusion of the playoffs.

As far as which teams would lose affiliation, Cooper wrote that the "four, non-complex Rookie-level and short-season classifications from the minor leagues" would be eliminated.

The remaining minor league levels would also be restructured, per Cooper:

"While there would still be Triple-A, Double-A, high Class A and low Class A, those four levels would be completely reworked to make the leagues much more geographically compact. In Triple-A, the Pacific Coast League would shift from 16 teams to 10. The International League would grow to 20 teams. The 14-team low Class A South Atlantic League would be turned into a six-team league with a new Mid-Atlantic league springing up."

Teams such as the Iowa Cubs, Memphis Redbirds and Nashville Sounds call the Pacific Coast League home.

Minor league baseball may be undergoing a significant restructure, but the biggest problem is players struggling to make a living.

Emily Waldon of The Athletic provided an in-depth report March 15 highlighting the significant financial concerns that plague minor leaguers waiting for their call.

That struggle has found its way to Congress, though not in favor of the players.

"The 'Save America’s Pastime Act' was the result of lobbying by Major League Baseball—lobbying that cost the league roughly $2.6 million over two years—to legalize an exemption to the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938," Waldon wrote. "This exemption would allow the league to deny players overtime pay 'for a workweek of 40 hours irrespective of the number of hours the employee devotes to baseball-related activities.’'"

Waldon estimated that Triple-A players make "$11,825-$14,850 per year," with housing not included for players at that level. That number falls dramatically to $6,380-$8,400 for Single-A players.

The MLB's statement to the New York Times included the phrase "increasing player compensation," so it will be notable to see if that occurs as part of the new PBA and the potential restructuring.