Bernie Sanders condemns MLB proposal to cut 42 minor-league teams

United States Senator and Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders is urging Major League Baseball and commissioner Rob Manfred against potentially cutting more than 40 minor-league teams.

"I am writing to urge you and the owners of Major League Baseball franchises not to eliminate any of the 42 Minor League Baseball clubs that have been put on the chopping block," Sanders wrote in an open letter Monday.

"Shutting down 25 percent of Minor League Baseball teams, as you have proposed, would be an absolute disaster for baseball fans, workers, and communities throughout the country. Not only would your extreme proposal destroy thousands of jobs and devastate local economies, it would be terrible for baseball."

Last week, Manfred confirmed a report that the league was considering restructuring the minor leagues and could eliminate more than 40 teams due to inadequate facilities.

After Sanders' unsuccessful bid for the 2016 Democratic presidential nomination, the Vermont senator is running again in 2020 and is currently in the midst of primaries.