There are some MLB teams that are set to shell out some serious money for their roster of players this coming season. Nine different franchises will be paying over $200 million for their players in 2024, with the New York Mets owing the most at $301 million.
But there is another extreme end of the spectrum, as well. There are a handful of teams that are in money-saving mode, and have some of the lowest possible payrolls that you will see in the MLB.
Which MLB Teams Are The Cheapest For 2024?
the Oakland A’s opening day payroll was $18 million higher in 2007 (17 years ago) than it is in 2024 pic.twitter.com/JjCUpEqyEJ
— BrooksGate (@Brooks_Gate) March 18, 2024
Who are they exactly? Here are the five teams with the lowest payrolls in baseball for the 2024 season:
5. Tampa Bay Rays – $87,216,012
Few teams are able to get more out of spending less than the Rays. They had the 4th-cheapest roster in the MLB last season, but finished with the 4th-most wins of any team in baseball with 99, and were one of the World Series favorites before a surprise elimination.
There is only one player on Tampa’s roster that is set to earn north of $10 million for the upcoming season, and that is starting pitcher Zach Effin, who is set to take home $11 million. For comparison’s sake, the Mets have 9 players making more than $10 million, and five of them making $15 million or more.
4. Miami Marlins – $86,535,000
About a million and a half dollars separate the Marlins from the Rays, though the other Florida team doesn’t have much to show for it. The franchise that is known for low payrolls and letting players go who are in position to be paid is again one of the lowest spenders, Miami seemed to overachieve a bit last year to finish with 84 wins and a spot in the MLB postseason.
But they’ll have to try and do the same or better with a roster that costs nearly $20 million less than it did last year. They are projected by the sports books to finish under .500 as their over/under win total is set at 77.5.
The Mets are spending $25,000,000 more on dead payroll this season than the A’s are spending on their entire active payroll.
Something is not right in MLB y’all. https://t.co/l1iEYlPLvk
— OaklandStadiumWatch (@OakStadiumWatch) March 22, 2024
3. Cleveland Guardians – $86,433,928
Cleveland has a payroll that is roughly just $100,000 shy of that of the Marlins. They lack star power outside a couple of names, who happen to be easily the highest paid on the top. Third baseman Jose Ramirez is set to take home $17 million in 2024, while starting pitcher Shane Bieber will earn $13.1 million.
Both of those salaries are more than double what any other player in the team makes, and there aren’t a whole lot of expectations to go with the cheap roster. Vegas odds have them pinned at over/under 79.5 wins for the year.
2. Pittsburgh Pirates – $72,014,000
Along with our #1 team, the Pirates have been notoriously low spenders over the past few seasons. After being one of the better teams during the middle part of the 2010s, Pittsburgh hasn’t finished better than in 4th place in the NL Central since 2016, and had 100+ losses in both 2021 and 2022.
Aroldis Chapman and Bryan Reynolds’s are the only players set to earn more than $10 million, though both are just a tick above that exact mark. The two are owed a combined $20.75 million, which represents just shy of 29% of the team’s total payroll.
Your 2024 Pittsburgh Pirates 🏴☠️ pic.twitter.com/4Klh4GBpVB
— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) March 25, 2024
1. Oakland Athletics – $47,055,000
The team known for being the cheapest franchise in all of baseball is pushing the envelope this year. With the team under serious threat to leave the city of Oakland for greener pastures in Las Vegas, management has decided to save money on the team’s payroll. The entire team is owed nearly $25 million less than the next-lowest, and they don’t have a single player making over $10 million for the upcoming MLB season.
The number is so low, in fact, that the Athletics actually had a higher payroll in the year 2003 than they do today. The two highest-paid players on the Mets payroll have a combined salary that is nearly $8 million more than the entire Oakland roster.
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