The typical MLB player makes $520,000 a year. So far in 2016 that number is actually a much higher $1.35 million. That’s more than double what it’s been for the past five years. The change doesn’t come from a massive hike to MLB player money but instead from the way the MLB works. Right now the MLB has only 900 players. The lowest paid 250 or so don’t get contracts until late summer. At that time, expanding rosters and injuries result in more low-level players becoming active. Others get brought up from the minor leagues in September. By the end of the 2016 season, the $1.35 million typical MLB player salary will be back down around $520,000, where it’s been in recent years.
The average MLB player makes $4.2 million, but average doesn’t mean much in a league where a few players make over $30 million and most make less than a million. For 2016, the highest paid MLB player is L.A. Dodgers starting pitcher Clayton Kershaw with $34.57 million. Zack Greinke and David Price also make $30 million or more each. There are 34 players with salaries in the $20-30 million range, 86 in the $10-$20 million range, 286 that make between $2 million and $10 million, and 489 that make less than $2 million. By September, that last number will be more like 750.
Median MLB Salary
Unfortunately, baseball throws another wrench in the statistical gears with the way its season comes together. Teams start out with a much lower number of players. Early season 2016, there are only 900 total MLB players spread across all 30 teams. Later in the season, MLB player ranks will swell to 1,100 or 1,200. Those extra 200 to 300 players are all the lowest paid. That means early season, the “typical” MLB player makes $1.35 million. But that’s like saying “the typical player, excluding all the lowest paid.” It doesn’t make much sense. The table below gives a good idea of what the typical player made from 2011-2015. By late September, 2016’s median will look a lot more like other years.
Median MLB Player Salary 2011 | $485,000 |
---|---|
Median MLB Player Salary 2012 | $495,000 |
Median MLB Player Salary 2013 | $507,900 |
Median MLB Player Salary 2014 | $525,400 |
Median MLB Player Salary 2015 | $520,000 |
Median MLB Player Salary 2016 (early season) | $1,350,000 |
Related: How Much Money Does an NBA Player Make?
How Much Money MLB Players Make
The typical MLB player salary is $520,000 a year. The average is almost $3 million. In 2015, the media threw around average player pay over $4 million, but that was before the roster changes filled out the league’s ranks later in the season. After the fact, the real 2015 average wound up at $2.84 million. It looks to wind up slightly higher than that for 2016.
In 2015, the final tally of active players wound up at 1,196. For 2016, the total of all MLB payroll money is $3.9 billion. If that money were split evenly between 1,196 players, it would give an average salary of $3.3 million. Taking the real, current player list for the entire league, the average MLB salary as of 4/26/16 is $4.16 million. The highest paid player in the league is Clayton Kershaw. The L.A. Dodgers’ starting pitcher has the highest baseball salary in history. He’ll also keep that honor through 2018, when his contract will boost his pay to $35.57 million. High-end MLB salaries tend to be higher than those in the NBA or NFL, because the MLB doesn’t have a salary cap. Instead, a luxury tax on teams that pay players more than a certain amount is supposed to keep baseball salaries in check.
Typical MLB Salary | $520,000 |
---|---|
Average MLB Salary (so far in 2016 - will drop) | $4,155,907 |
Highest MLB Salary 2016 (Clayton Kershaw) | $34,571,428 |
Lowest MLB Salary (Minimum wage) | $507,500 |
Highest MLB Player Pay Ever (Clayton Kershaw) | $34,571,428 |
Highest Future MLB Salary Agreed To (Clayton Kershaw 2018) | $35,571,428 |
Total MLB Payroll 2016 | $3,941,872,505 |
MLB Salary Cap | None (See "MLB Luxury Tax" below) |
MLB Luxury Tax | 17.5% to 50% |
Highest MLB Team Payroll (L.A. Dodgers) | $249,185,691 |
Number of MLB Players (as of early 2016 - will grow to about 1,150) | 900 |
Related: How Much Money Do NFL Players Make?
The 20 Highest Paid MLB Players
Clayton Kershaw | $34,571,428 |
---|---|
Zack Greinke | $34,000,000 |
David Price | $30,000,000 |
Miguel Cabrera | $28,000,000 |
Justin Verlander | $28,000,000 |
Felix Hernandez | $25,857,142 |
Ryan Howard | $25,000,000 |
Albert Pujols | $25,000,000 |
C.C. Sabathia | $25,000,000 |
Jon Lester | $25,000,000 |
Robinson Cano | $24,000,000 |
Cole Hamels | $23,500,000 |
Mark Teixeira | $23,125,000 |
Joe Mauer | $23,000,000 |
Hanley Ramirez | $22,750,000 |
Max Scherzer | $22,142,857 |
Justin Upton | $22,125,000 |
Masahiro Tanaka | $22,000,000 |
Jose Reyes | $22,000,000 |
Adrian Gonzalez | $21,857,142 |
The Lowest Paid MLB Players
The lowest paid active MLB players all make $507,500. That’s the league’s 2016 minimum wage. There are 97 players who earn that salary. There are another 285 who make less than $600,000. The minimum wage for the MLB has grown only slightly since 2011. A league regulation prevents the figure from backsliding, but there’s nothing that says it can’t stay at the same level for at least two consecutive years.
Min MLB Pay 2011 | $480,000 |
---|---|
Min MLB Pay 2012 | $480,000 |
Min MLB Pay 2013 | $490,000 |
Min MLB Pay 2014 | $505,000 |
Min MLB Pay 2015 | $507,500 |
Min MLB Pay 2016 | $507,500 |
Highest Paid MLB Teams
MLB Team | Total Salary |
---|---|
Los Angeles Dodgers | $249,185,691 |
New York Yankees | $228,273,069 |
Boston Red Sox | $201,242,449 |
Detroit Tigers | $191,937,493 |
San Francisco Giants | $172,790,080 |
Los Angeles Angels | $167,790,141 |
Chicago Cubs | $167,444,167 |
Texas Rangers | $163,114,487 |
St. Louis Cardinals | $148,678,500 |
Baltimore Orioles | $147,693,713 |
Related: How Much Money Do You Get If You Win the World Series?
Total MLB Salary by Year
Total MLB Salary 1985 | $275,274,757 |
---|---|
Total MLB Salary 2011 | $3,099,845,907 |
Total MLB Salary 2012 | $3,266,889,603 |
Total MLB Salary 2013 | $3,343,362,504 |
Total MLB Salary 2014 | $3,649,993,277 |
Total MLB Salary 2015 | $3,918,920,897 |
Total MLB Salary 2016 | $3,941,872,505 |
The MLB has much more money than the NBA to pay players. Lebron is getting paid $23 Mil and John Lester is getting paid $20 Mil. #joke
— Chris Hass ⓮ (@Chris_Hass_14) April 26, 2016
Are MLB Players Paid Too Much?
To contrast the big leagues, the MLB pays 1,200 players $3.9 billion a year on $9.5 billion in revenue. The NBA pays 446 players $2.3 billion on $5 billion in revenue. The NFL pays 1,696 players $3.6 billion on an estimated $7 billion in revenue. Seen that way, MLB players get 41% of total league revenue, NBA players get 46% and NFL players get about half.
MLB should have a salary cap instead of using a luxury tax on teams
— Sahej (@SahejBrar) April 25, 2016
Does the MLB’s Luxury Tax Work?
Interested in learning more about how much money players make in the big sports leagues? Check out our article on how much money NBA players really make. We’ve also got a post on how much money players make in the NFL.
Sources: