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On Average, Baseball Players Are Banking

Alex RodriguezThe Florida Marlins and the New York Yankees won last night. Both teams got a tally in the win column, but the Marlins’ win cost a lot less than the Yankees’ win. In fact, the entire payroll of this year’s Marlins teams comes out to less than what A-Rod will make for playing third base. Obviously, the Yankees will generate more income, though, based on more attendance at games, merchandise sold, television deals, etc. The real important fact about player salaries across the board is that for the first time in baseball history, the average salary topped the $3 million mark.

The 855 players on Opening-Day rosters and the DL averaged $3.15 million, up 7.1 percent from last year’s starting average of $2.94 million.

The median salary is $1 million, exemplifying the fact that the superstars are skewing the average salary mark to the high $3 million figure. Most major league players are making much less than $1 million per year. Still, 434 players will make more than $1 million this year, which is a new record number.

Here is a quick list of the teams with the highest payrolls, bumping up those average player salaries:

  1. New York Yankees (AL East) – $209.1 million
  2. Detroit Tigers (AL Central) – $138.7 million
  3. New York Mets (NL East) – $138.3 million
  4. Boston Red Sox (AL East) – $133.4 million
  5. Chicago White Sox (AL Central) – $121.2 million
  6. Los Angeles Angels (AL West) – $119.2 million
  7. Chicago Cubs (NL Central) – $118.6 million
  8. Los Angeles Dodgers (NL West) – $118.5 million
  9. Seattle Mariners (AL West) – $118 million
  10. Atlanta Braves (NL East) – $102.4 million

Six out of the top ten payrolls come from the AL. Four out of the top five are AL teams. Represent a player who is bound to turn into a superstar warranting top dollar figures from his team? May want to try to get him onto one of the top five teams listed above. One team to stay away from would be the Florida Marlins, with a total payroll of $21.8 million. Then again, they beat the #3 payroll, New York Mets, last night.

By Darren Heitner

Darren Adam Heitner, Esq., is a preeminent sports attorney and the founder of Heitner Legal, P.L.L.C., a Fort Lauderdale-based law firm specializing in sports law, contract negotiations, intellectual property, and arbitration. He earned his Juris Doctor from the University of Florida Levin College of Law in 2010 and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, magna cum laude, from the University of Florida in 2007, where he was named Valedictorian of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Admitted to practice in the state bars of Florida, New York, and the District of Columbia, as well as multiple federal courts, Darren also serves as a certified arbitrator with the American Arbitration Association.

As an adjunct professor, Darren imparts his expertise through teaching Sports Law at the University of Florida Levin College of Law and Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) at the University of Miami School of Law in the Entertainment, Arts, and Sports Law LL.M. program. His scholarly contributions include authoring several books published by the American Bar Association, such as How to Play the Game: What Every Sports Attorney Needs to Know, and numerous articles in prominent publications like Forbes, Inc. Magazine, and Above the Law. His thought leadership in NIL has earned him recognition as one of the foremost experts by The Wall Street Journal, USA TODAY, and On3, and he has been lauded as a “power player in NIL deals” by Action Network and a “top sports trademark attorney” by Sportico.

Darren’s passion for sports law led him to establish Sports Agent Blog on December 31, 2005, initially titled “I Want To Be A Sports Agent.” The platform, created as a New Year’s resolution, has grown into a cornerstone of the sports agency community, offering in-depth analysis of industry trends, legal disputes, and agent-player dynamics. His commitment to the field is further evidenced by his representation of numerous athletes and sports agents, as well as his prior role as an Adjunct Professor at Indiana University Bloomington, where he developed and taught a course on Sport Agency Management from 2011 to 2014.

Darren’s contributions have been recognized with prestigious honors, including the University of Florida’s 40 Under 40 Award, the University of Florida Levin College of Law’s Outstanding Young Alumnus Award, and designation as the best lawyer in Fort Lauderdale by Fort Lauderdale Magazine. He remains an active voice in the sports law community, sharing insights through his weekly NIL newsletter and his X posts, engaging a broad audience on legal developments in sports.

One reply on “On Average, Baseball Players Are Banking”

if you’re an agent for a high-profile player that’s arbitration eligible, the marlins wouldn’t be interested, the mets would.

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