Sports. of or relating to the minor leagues, especially in baseball.
Informal. of little import or consequence.
a painter with minor-league talent.
any professional league in baseball other than a major league Compare major league
(modifier) of relatively little importance
that firm is very minor league
An Americanism dating back to 1880–85
An Americanism dating back to 1930–35; adjective use of minor league ( def. )
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
We might eventually see coaches earning less than million-dollar salaries while NFL teams, valued at tens of billions of dollars, create their own minor league.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 30, 2026
The Los Angeles Angels moved into Dodger Stadium in 1962, their second season, after playing their inaugural season in a since-demolished minor league ballpark near the Coliseum.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 3, 2026
Oswaldo Pirela, a San Diego Padres minor league coach who was taken into custody by ICE on Aug. 16, was released on bond Monday “pending his removal proceedings,” according to the Dept. of Homeland Security.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026
The latter company would also include the Hartford Wolf Pack, a minor league ice hockey team, and MSG Training Center in Westchester County.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
I understand the demanding schedule of minor league baseball, but I also realize that I might not get a second chance to sign if I go to college.
From "The Freedom Writers Diary" by The Freedom Writers
After slowly climbing the minor-league ladder, Kerr made his MLB debut for the San Diego Padres in 2022 at the age of 27.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026
“The game tends to humble everybody,” Cardinals minor-league hitting coordinator Brock Hammit said, “and he got humbled.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026
Because the Dodgers want to keep Ohtani in the lineup, he’ll have to build up in games rather than going on a minor-league rehab assignment.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 15, 2026
None of them is a full-time MLB umpire but rather a minor-league call-up tapped only when needed, yet they are faring better with ABS than their more established peers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026
It was only a good stakes race at a minor-league track, but it might as well have been the hundred-grander.
From "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" by Laura Hillenbrand
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
