What’s Yankees’ Payroll Situation For 2024? Explained

For luxury tax reasons, the Yankees are entering a new territory: the country of a $300 million payroll.

What’s Yankees’ Payroll Situation For 2024? Explained

Barring any more transactions, the Yankees are now expected to eclipse a $300 million luxury tax payroll for the first time in team history after reaching an agreement to terms on a two-year, $37 million contract with Marcus Stroman.

During the offseason, the Yankees added Alex Verdugo and Juan Soto (who will make a record $31 million in his final year of arbitration), Trent Grisham, and now Stroman via free agency. According to Cot’s Contracts, the team’s projected competitive balance tax payroll is $304.3 million.

It’s doubtful that any more free agency signings are in the plans, but general manager Brian Cashman will try to keep expanding the squad through trades.

It’s safe to assume that Cashman will continue to prevent Hal Steinbrenner from reaching the “Steve Cohen tax” in 2024, as he has done in previous seasons.

That’s why Cashman now considers deals to be a great asset. Even if the Yankees aren’t in the running for Blake Snell or Jordan Montgomery, the acquisition of Marcus Stroman hasn’t stopped them from selling prospects for a young, reliable arm.

Although it might not happen before the season begins, Cashman has previously explored this route around the trade deadline.

After the Mets ($319.4 million) and Dodgers ($307.2 million), that is now the third-highest projected CBT payroll.

The Yankees are now projected to owe $48.4 million in taxes since the fourth and highest luxury tax threshold—often referred to as the “Steve Cohen Tax”—is $297 million for 2024.

The Associated Press reports that the Yankees paid $32.4 million in taxes in 2023, just beyond the maximum tax threshold of $293 million.

Salary committed for 2024

Here are the key players the Yankees added this offseason and what they’ll make in 2024:

  • Juan Soto – $31 million
  • Marcus Stroman – $18.5 million
  • Alex Verdugo – $8.7 million
  • Trent Grisham – $5.5 million
  • Caleb Ferguson – $2.4 million
  • Luke Weaver – $2 million
  • Victor Gonzalez – $860,000

The addition of pitchers Tyler Glasnow and Yoshimobu Yamamoto, outfielders Teoscar Hernandez and Manuel Margot, and slugger Shohei Ohtani raised the Dodgers’ salary for 2024.

This summer, Ohtani, 29, inked a $700 million, ten-year contract.

The Dodgers’ projected payroll for this winter thus far is $53 million higher than it was the previous season.

Ohtani has deferred a large portion of his contract compensation, but the organization will still be responsible for $70 million of Ohtani’s deal this year due to the Competitive Balance Tax.

The Yanks allegedly made Snell an offer of a six-year, $150 million contract after losing out on Yoshinobu Yamamoto, but the Cy Young winner refused to accept the offer, requesting $270 million spread over nine years.

At that moment, the Yankees made the proper decision to end talks and turned to Stroman, who they signed for a two-year contract worth $37 million with a 2026 option.

The Yankees may decide to add more players to their payroll in 2024 in order to bolster their bullpen or rotation.

Gleyber Torres and his $14.2 million contract might be transferred if they were looking for ways to reduce their budget, but doing so would hinder the Yankees’ offensive.

This next season, Aaron Judge, an outfielder, will continue to be paid the highest salary of any Yankee.

The 31-year-old judge will receive $40 million annually until 2031.

Is the Yankees 2024 roster complete, or will they add additional pitching and/or offense? These are questions that have to be asked.

 

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