Sports

MLB’s average salary tops $5 million for first time, AP study shows

Published

3 days ago

April 3, 2025

NEW YORK (AP) — Major League Baseball’s average salary broke the $5 million barrier on opening day for the first time, according to a study by The Associated Press.

The New York Mets, with Juan Soto’s record $61.9 million pay, led MLB for the third straight opening day with a $322.6 million payroll, just ahead of the World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers at $319.5 million. Those two teams each spent roughly five times as much as the Miami Marlins, who at $64.9 million ended the Athletics’ three-year streak as the lowest spender.

Still, the Mets were down from their record high of $355.4 million in 2023.

The average rose 3.6% to $5,160,245. That was up from a 1.5% increase last year but down from an 11.1% increase in 2023.

Adding Blake Snell, Michael Conforto, Tanner Scott and Kirby Yates, the Dodgers boosted payroll by a big league-high $69 million from opening day last year. Baltimore hiked spending by $66 million, followed by Arizona ($55 million), San Diego ($47 million), Philadelphia ($41 million) and Detroit ($39 million).

Los Angeles’ payroll figure was held down by deferred payments. Shohei Ohtani’s $70 million salary was discounted to a present-day value of $28.2 million because it won’t be paid in full until 2035, causing him to be listed as the 18th-highest-paid player. Other Dodgers with deferred payments include Mookie Betts, Tommy Edman, Freddie Freeman, Teoscar Hernández, Scott, Will Smith and Snell.

Following their record 121-loss season, the Chicago White Sox cut payroll by $60.8 million, San Francisco by $39.1 million, Miami by $31.7 million and St. Louis by $31.6 million. The American League champion Yankees dropped by $18.5 million.

Just five teams were under $100 million, with the Marlins joined by the A’s ($74.9 million), Tampa Bay ($79.2 million), the White Sox ($80.9 million) and Pittsburgh ($87.9 million).

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Soto broke the previous high of $43.3 million shared by pitchers Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander under deals they agreed to with the Mets.

Phillies pitcher Zack Wheeler is second at $42 million, followed by Texas pitcher Jacob deGrom and Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge at $40 million each.

Of 953 players in the major leagues on opening day, 526 had salaries of $1 million or more, 55%, and down from 532 last year and 546 in 2023.

There were 15 players at $30 million or more, a drop of two; 66 at $20 million, up from 66; and 177 at $10 million, an increase from 166.

A total of 35 players made the $760,000 minimum.

The top 50 players make 29% of the salaries, the same as in the prior two years, and the top 100 earn 48%, up from 47%.

Baseball’s median salary, the point at which an equal number of players are above and below, dropped to $1.35 million from $1.5 million and well below the record high of $1.65 million at the start of 2015.

Average and median salaries decline over the course of the season as veterans are released and replaced by younger players making closer to the minimum. The AP’s average was $4.98 million at the start of last season; MLB calculated the final average at $4.59 million and the players’ association at $4.66 million.

Because they started the season in the minor leagues, Baltimore pitcher Kyle Gibson ($5.25 million), Detroit pitcher Jason Foley ($3.15 million) and Dodgers second baseman Hyeseong Kim ($2.8 million) were among the players not included in the opening day payroll figures.

The AP’s figures include salaries and prorated shares of signing bonuses and other guaranteed income.

Payroll figures factor in adjustments for cash transactions in trades, signing bonuses that are the responsibility of the club agreeing to the contract, option buyouts and termination pay for released players.

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB

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Sports

Quinn, Tuch score shootout goals in Sabres 3-2 win over playoff-bound Lightning

Published

24 minutes ago

April 6, 2025

Austin Reed

Buffalo Sabres right wing Alex Tuch celebrates after his goal during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Washington Capitals, Sunday, March 30, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)

BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — Jack Quinn and Alex Tuch scored shootout goals, and the Buffalo Sabres rallied from a pair of one-goal deficits in a 3-2 win over the playoff-bound Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday night.

Despite the loss, the Lightning clinched their eighth straight playoff berth following the New York Rangers’ 4-0 loss to New Jersey earlier in the day.

Tage Thompson and Jason Zucker scored for Buffalo, which has won six of seven and five straight at home. James Reimer stopped 22 shots through overtime and both shootout attempts to win his career-best matching sixth straight start.

Brayden Point and rookie Gage Goncalves scored for the Lightning and Jonas Johansson stopped 36 shots, and one of three shootout attempts.

Sitting second in the Atlantic Division, the Lightning moved two points ahead of third-place Florida, but fell four back of the division-leading Toronto Maple Leafs.

Takeaways

Lightning: Started slowly in failing to register their first shot on net until 14:12 in, and were outshot 9-2 in the first period. Ended slowly, combining for nine shots over the final 25 minutes.

Sabres: Thompson’s goal was his 40th, making him Buffalo’s first player with multiple 40-goal seasons since Thomas Vanek in 2006-07 and 2008-09, and ninth overall. Rick Martin tops the list with five 40-goal seasons.

Key moment

Zucker tied the game at 2 with a power-play goal 5:07 into the third. Rasmus Dahlin’s initial shot was blocked and the puck dribbled to Zucker, who swept it in under Johansson’s pad.

Key stat

Tampa Bay dropped to 32-8-5 when scoring first and 35-1-2 when leading after two periods.

Up Next

The Lightning complete a four-game road swing at the New York Rangers on Monday night, while Buffalo hosts Boston on Sunday night.

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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

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Langford’s 2-run homer in the seventh inning lifts Rangers past Rays 6-4 for 4th straight win

Published

57 minutes ago

April 6, 2025

Austin Reed

Texas Rangers’ Wyatt Langford, right, celebrates his home run with teammate Joc Pederson (4) during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Tampa Bay Rays, Saturday, April 5, 2025, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Wyatt Langford hit a go-ahead two-run homer in the seventh inning after Jacob deGrom allowed a four-run lead to slip away and the Texas Rangers beat the Tampa Bay Rays 6-4 on Saturday night for their fourth straight victory.

After the Rays trailed 4-0 after one inning, Jonathan Aranda hit a two-run homer as part of Tampa Bay’s three-run sixth that tied it at 4.

Aranda’s homer and Kameron Misner’s double knocked deGrom from the game. DeGrom allowed four runs and eight hits — including homers by Aranda and Brandon Lowe — in 5⅔ innings.

Texas scored four times in the first against Rays starter Taj Bradley. Marcus Semien hit a leadoff homer and Jake Burger had a three-run shot with two outs after Langford and Adolis Garcia walked.

Bradley regrouped and held the Rangers hitless over the next four innings. He allowed four runs and two hits and four walks with seven strikeouts in five innings.

Robert Garcia (1-0), the Rangers’ third pitcher, got one out to earn the win. Luke Jackson pitched the ninth for his fifth save. Mason Montgomery (0-1) gave up Langford’s homer and took the loss.

Key moment

Although Langford’s two-run homer gave Texas the lead, Kevin Pillar led off the inning with a single, stole second and advanced to third on a throwing error by catcher Danny Jansen ahead of the homer.

Key stat

DeGrom allowed multiple homers in a game for the first time since Sept. 30, 2022, when the Braves hit three against him when he was with the Mets.

Up next

Rays right-hander Drew Rasmussen faces Rangers right-hander Kumar Rocker in the series finale at 1:35 p.m. Sunday.

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

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Sports

Kansas City Mayor Claims The City Has Money For a Royals’ Stadium

Published

12 hours ago

April 5, 2025

Austin Reed

Quinton Lucas, Kansas City, Missouri mayor

The Royals’ owner wants a new stadium soon.

Kansas City, Missouri Mayor Quinton Lucas said his city has offered more than $1 billion to the owner of the Major League Baseball Kansas City Royals franchise John Sherman to help Sherman build a new downtown stadium or renovate the business’s 52-year-old home stadium. “We do have, I think, a very robust offer that combines state and local incentives,” Lucas said. “It’s my view that gets you to a $1.2 to $1.4 billion range with no tax increase. It doesn’t calculate or include the current Jackson County sales tax.” Sherman has been talking to political leaders in Kansas City, Jackson County, Missouri and politicians in Kansas about getting a stadium-village built somewhere in the Kansas City market.

Sherman has been looking for a site for his business for a year after the Jackson County, Missouri voters said no to extending a sales tax that would have funded a new baseball stadium in downtown Kansas City and a renovated stadium for the National Football League’s Kansas City Chiefs franchise. Kansas lawmakers are still mulling over a proposal that would see STAR bonds used to pay 75% of the cost of building two stadiums in Kansas. Additionally, sports gambling and lottery gaming and sales tax revenue from businesses in the stadium development districts would cover bond debt. Another source of revenue to pay off the debt would come from a liquor tax. Kansas lawmakers could use a mechanism that would allow up to 100% of sales tax revenue on alcoholic liquor sales within a stadium district to pay off bonds for the structures. Chiefs’ owner Clark Hunt and Sherman should be in a good spot in 2025 as two states, Missouri and Kansas, might be ready to throw money at them to build stadiums for their businesses. It is a place that sports owners dream about. Sherman wants a stadium deal this year.

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