Although not typically the highest-paid infielders, first basemen can earn lucrative contracts, typically based on offensive production and power hitting.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. leads all first basemen with his $28.8 million AAV. The Blue Jays’ marquee player signed a one-year deal in arbitration to remain at the club he’s played for his entire career.
Toronto faces an interesting dilemma as they decide whether to trade Guerrero Jr. this offseason while pursuing other big name free agents like Juan Soto, or resign him to keep him as their franchise player.
Perennial all-star selection Freddie Freeman is second, raking in $27 million with the Dodgers. Freeman signed a six-year deal worth $162 million in 2022. He’s coming off a World Series win with Los Angeles capped off with by an MVP performance.
Third on the list is Bryce Harper, who makes $25.4 million in AAV with the Phillies. The 2012 NL Rookie of the Year and four-time Silver Slugger signed a 13-year, $330 million deal with Philadelphia in 2019.
Making $21 million in AAV, Matt Olson of the Braves comes in fourth on the list. Olson played seven years with the A’s before a trade in 2022 sent him to Atlanta.
Rounding out the top five is Wilson Contreras, who earns $17.5 million in AAV. The three-time All-Star helped the Cubs win their first World Series in 108 years when he was with them in 2016.
The top five first basemen on the list earn a combined $119.7 million annually. And the top two combined still earn $14.2 million less than Shohei Ohtani in average annual value.
Ranking The Highest-Paid First Basemen in MLB
Here is the entire list of the highest-paid MLB first basemen of 2024, sorted by AAV. The list was compiled with data from Spotrac and Baseball-Reference.
- Updated: November 21st, 2024
| Rank | Player | Team | Compensation |
| 1 | Vladimir Guerrero Jr. | Toronto Blue Jays | $28.8 million |
| 2 | Freddie Freeman | Los Angeles Dodgers | $27 million |
| 3 | Bryce Harper | Philadelphia Phillies | $25.4 million |
| 4 | Matt Olson | Atlanta Braves | $21 million |
| 5 | Wilson Contreras | St. Louis Cardinals | $17.5 million |
| 6 | Josh Naylor | Cleveland Guardians | $14.2 million |
| 7 | Max Muncy | Los Angeles Dodgers | $12 million |
| 8 | Jake Cronenworth | San Diego Padres | $11.4 million |
| 9 | Nate Lowe | Texas Rangers | $10.7 million |
| 10 | Wilmer Flores | San Francisco Giants | $5.5 million |
| 11 | Andrew Vaughn | Chicago White Sox | $4.4 million |
| 12 | LaMonte Wade Jr. | San Francisco Giants | $4.3 million |
| 13 | Ryan O’Hearn | Baltimore Orioles | $3.5 million |
| 14 | Matt Thaiss | Chicago Cubs | $1.3 million |
| 15 | Pavin Smith | Arizona Diamondbacks | $1 million |
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