While salaries have risen exponentially for coaches across many of the major professional leagues, MLB managers have consistently been paid some of the lowest salaries among the major American sports leagues.
But Craig Counsell is determined to reverse that trend.
The Chicago skipper is the highest-paid MLB manager of 2024. In November, he signed a 5-year, $40 million contract to manage the Cubs.
This gives him the most lucrative managerial contract in MLB history. The deal has him set to make $8 million this year – surpassing former manager Joe Torre’s $7.5 million with the Yankees.
Counsell is staying in the NL Central, after leaving his hometown Brewers, to manage their division rivals.
Counsell is Milwaukee’s most successful manager in team history. He led them to five playoff appearances and three division titles.
Coming in second is Pedro Grifol, who earns a reported $5.5 million to manage the White Sox.
Grifol’s salary had been $3.75 million in 2023. He’ll make $5.5 million this year as part of his contract extension signed in 2020.
Third on the list is Torey Lovullo of the Diamondbacks. Lovullo signed a contract extension in November 2023 that nets him $5 million this year.
Arizona made an improbable run to the World Series last season, as Lovullo guided the team to its first postseason birth since 2017.
Bruce Bochy of the Rangers is fourth among the highest-paid MLB managers. Bochy led the Texas Rangers to the franchise’s first World Series win in 2023.
He’s the only manager on the list with more than one World Series win, having won the pennant three other times with the Giants.
Five managers are tied for fifth on the list.
Ron Washington of the Angels, Stephen Vogt of the Guardians, Bob Melvin of the Giants, Mike Shildt of the Padres, and Brian Snitker of the Braves will each earn $4 million this year.
Washington, Vogt, Melvin, and Shildt are all in their first years with a new team.
Snitker is one of the longest-tenured managers in the league entering his eighth year with Atlanta. He’s also the only one in this group to have won the World Series, winning in 2021 with the Braves.
Ranking the Highest-Paid MLB Managers
Here is the entire list of highest-paid MLB managers of 2024 by salary. The list was compiled based on data from Baseball-Reference, USA Today, and The Guardian.
- Updated: May 23, 2024
| Rank | Coach | Team | Career Winning Percentage | World Series Wins | Total Compensation |
| 1 | Craig Counsell | Chicago Cubs | 0.532 | 0 | $8 million |
| 2 | Pedro Grifol | Chicago White Sox | 0.364 | 0 | $5.5 million |
| 3 | Torey Lovullo | Arizona Diamondbacks | 0.48 | 0 | $5 million |
| 4 | Bruce Bochy | Texas Rangers | 0.499 | 4 | $4.5 million |
| T-5 | Ron Washington | Los Angeles Angels | 0.516 | 0 | $4 million |
| T-5 | Stephen Vogt | Cleveland Guardians | 0.614 | 0 | $4 million |
| T-5 | Bob Melvin | San Francisco Giants | 0.514 | 0 | $4 million |
| T-5 | Mike Shildt | San Diego Padres | 0.551 | 0 | $4 million |
| T-5 | Brian Snitker | Atlanta Braves | 0.563 | 1 | $4 million |
| 10 | Dave Martinez | Washington Nationals | 0.452 | 1 | $3.5 million |
| 11 | Aaron Boone | New York Yankees | 0.589 | 0 | $3.3 million |
| 12 | Dave Roberts | Los Angeles Dodgers | 0.631 | 1 | $3.25 million |
| 13 | Alex Cora | Boston Red Sox | 0.542 | 1 | $3 million |
| T-14 | Derek Shelton | Pittsburgh Pirates | 0.402 | 0 | $1.5 million |
| T-14 | Carlos Mendoza | New York Mets | 0.452 | 0 | $1.5 million |
| 16 | Scott Servais | Seattle Mariners | 0.517 | 0 | $1.3 million |
| 17 | A.J. Hinch | Detroit Tigers | 0.524 | 1 | $1.2 million |
| T-18 | Matt Quatraro | Kansas City Royals | 0.396 | 0 | $1 million |
| T-18 | Kevin Cash | Tampa Bay Rays | 0.544 | 0 | $1 million |
| T-18 | David Bell | Cincinnati Reds | 0.467 | 0 | $1 million |
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