Athletes

Who Are the Highest-Paid Baseball Players?

Shohei Ohtani takes the top spot, earning $70 million in AAV.
Juan Soto’s deal worth $765 million is the biggest contract in sports history.

Mar 30, 2023 | 09:12 am

UPDATED Feb 13, 2025 | 05:37 pm

Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Major League Baseball’s average salary is as high as ever.

MLB saw player salaries rise 14.8% in aggregate in 2022 to $4.2 million, reversing a four-year trend of declining player salaries.

For MLB’s highest-paid players, it’s never been a better time for contract negotiations. Higher attendance, stronger ratings, and steadily increasing salaries work in their favor.

Shohei Ohtani takes the top spot as the highest-paid baseball player right now, earning $70 million in AAV with the Dodgers.

Ohtani signed his record-setting deal last December, giving him the largest contract in all of U.S. team sports. The two-time AL MVP and rare two-way player is the only baseball player earning over $50 million per season.

While Ohtani didn’t pitch this season due to an injured elbow ligament, Los Angeles is banking on him to return to the mound next year.

Juan Soto of the Mets is second with $51 million in AAV. Previously the most coveted free agent, Soto signed a deal on December 8th worth $765 million over 15 years.

The deal keeps the 26-year-old in New York until he’s 40, but he’ll trade his pinstripes for the orange and blue of his former team’s rivals.

Phillies ace Zack Wheeler is third, earning $42 million. He signed a three-year deal in May worth $126 million. His AAV jumped from $23.5 million to vault him to the second-highest starting pitcher in the MLB.

Aaron Judge and Alex Bregman are tied for fourth, earning $40 million annually.

The Yankees’ right fielder signed a $322 million contract in 2022 that will keep him in New York until 2031. The deal includes a no-trade clause and is fully guaranteed.

Alex Bregman signed with the Red Sox right before spring training. He’ll earn $120 million over three years with player opt-outs available after this season and the next.

The Dodgers lead all teams with six players among the highest-paid MLB players.

Front-line starters are invaluable. Ten starting pitchers are among the highest-paid baseball players, the most of any other position.

Meanwhile, five shortstops are featured as the second most represented position. Francisco Lindor of the Mets is the highest-paid shortstop, earning $34.1 million to place him eighth.

Ranking The Highest-Paid MLB Players

Here is the list of the top 25 highest-paid baseball players. The list was compiled with data from Spotrac.

Updated: April 10th, 2025

Rank	Player	Position	Team	Total Contract AAV
1	Shohei Ohtani	SP/DH	Los Angeles Dodgers	$70 million
2	Juan Soto	RF	New York Mets	$51 million
3	Zack Wheeler	SP	Philadelphia Phillies	$42 million
T-4	Aaron Judge	RF	New York Yankees	$40 million
T-4	Alex Bregman	3B	Boston Red Sox	$40 million
6	Jacob DeGrom	SP	Texas Rangers	$37 million
7	Blake Snell	SP	Los Angeles Dodgers	$36.4 million
8	Gerrit Cole	SP	New York Yankees	$36 million
9	Mike Trout	CF	Los Angeles Angels	$35.5 million
T-10	Anthony Rendon	3B	Los Angeles Angels	$35 million
T-10	Corbin Burnes	SP	Arizona Diamondbacks	$35 million
12	Francisco Lindor	SS	New York Mets	$34.1 million
13	Carlos Correa	SS	Minnesota Twins	$33.3 million
T-14	Corey Seager	SS	Texas Rangers	$32.5 million
T-14	Nolan Arenado	3B	St Louis Cardinals	$32.5 million
16	Manny Machado	3B	San Diego Padres	$31.8 million
17	Rafael Devers	3B	Boston Red Sox	$31.4 million
18	Mookie Betts	SS	Los Angeles Dodgers	$30.4 million
19	Vladimir Guerrero Jr.	1B	Toronto Blue Jays	$28.5 million
20	Tyler Glasnow	SP	Los Angeles Dodgers	$27.31 million
21	Trea Turner	SS	Philadelphia Phillies	$27.27 million
22	Max Fried	SP	New York Yankees	$27.25 million
23	Yoshinobu Yamamoto	SP	Los Angeles Dodgers	$27.1 million
T-24	Carlos Rodon	SP	New York Yankees	$27 million
T-24	Freddie Freeman	1B	Los Angeles Dodgers	$27 million
T-24	Pete Alonso	1B	New York Mets	$27 million