Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. received roughly $3.08MM from the pre-arbitration bonus pool, reports Jeff Passan of ESPN. Pirates righty Paul Skenes ($2.15MM) and Orioles shortstop Gunnar Henderson ($2MM) round out the top three.
The most recent collective bargaining agreement introduced a $50MM pool that is divided among players who have yet to accrue enough service time to reach arbitration. (Each team commits around $1.67MM to that fund every season.) The goal was to help highly-performing young players get paid earlier in their careers. Players are eligible even if they’ve signed a contract extension, as Witt did before the season. Despite inking a deal approaching $289MM, he’ll pick up a little more than $3MM as a result of his fantastic ’24 campaign.
A player receives $2.5MM for winning MVP or Cy Young. They’re awarded $1.75MM for a runner-up finish, $1.5MM for third place, and $1MM for fourth or fifth place. The Rookie of the Year winner in each league gets $750K, while the runners-up pick up $500K. Players named first-team All-MLB receive $1MM; a second-team All-MLB placement is worth $500K.
Players cannot double-up on those accolades. They’re paid in line with the highest award honors they received. Witt was the MVP runner-up in the American League. Skenes finished third in Cy Young voting. Henderson placed fourth in MVP voting.
After the award money is paid out, the remaining funds are divided between the top 100 eligible players based on a predetermined Wins Above Replacement formula which was mutually approved by MLB and the Players Association. William Contreras, Cole Ragans, Jarren Duran, Jackson Merrill and Luis Gil were the other players to top $1MM this year. The Associated Press lists every player who received some money based on their WAR totals — going down to Sal Frelick at a little over $232K.
That seems very fair to me.
It is. I’m glad the bonus exists it’s to help those underpaid and even tho Witt may technically be a good value it kinda rubs me the wrong way he’s getting it instead of someone on a rookie salary still. Feel those who’ve signed extensions should be excluded. He won’t even go through arbitration so is he really pre-arb
I don’t think players who sign extensions should be eligible. The purpose was to better compensate those young pre-arb players on minimal deals. Spread that money in my view either to others with everyone moving up or rollover that money to next year.
@dewey
It’s a slippery slope because some of these min. pay players have also received large signing bonuses upon getting drafted. It should be addressed over the next CBA.
Making those who sign extensions ineligible could disincentivize signing them and was probably opposed by the owners.
Give the teams the rewards just the players should understand when they ink a deal that covers their pre-arb years, it removes them from this program. Or set a dollar amount where they age out. This to me is as bad as a Japanese or Korean pro winning ROTY. While they may have just ended their first MLB season, they were not rookies.
He earned it and they didn’t. They need to work harder if they want more money.
Beats the jelly of the month club
That’s cool, I didn’t know that bonus pool was a thing.
Agreed, seems like a fair and good way to compensate stars.
However lower-level minor leaguers still need to be paid more. In my opinion, that’s the biggest financial issue in baseball right now that needs to change in the new CBA.
I remember how far apart the owners and the players were on the pool to be set aside for this. It was something like $80 million vs. $40 million at one point.
It’s cool they figured it out.
I wonder if the pool is set to increase, similar to the tax tiers.
Copilot says it stays the same year-to-year.
I am sure the MLBPA will try to negotiate higher amounts next go-round.
Glad your copilot is so well informed.
@This one
Har har.
KC signed Witt to a guaranteed almost $300 million contract. He should pass on the bonus and let other guys receive it.
Would you?
Yeah I would if I had that much money. Or donate it to NC like the other commenter said. $1m would be life changing to most of us on here. Hard to fathom having that much dough. Please don’t misunderstand this comment for me implying he didn’t earn it, cuz he did and he has the right to do whatever he wants with it.
The MLBPA probably wouldn’t allow him to do it anyway. If he felt that he didn’t “need” it he could just donate it to charity. Lots of people in North Carolina could use the help
That’s ridiculous. He earned it and they didn’t.
I thought this was a great idea. I remember Jonathan India getting a nice bonus first time around.
It would be great if ALL contracts were based on performance. You have to produce to get.
Kind of like real life.
They basically have to produce to get a contract or even to get drafted or signed as an international free agent in the first place. When a player reaches free agency teams negotiate with the players agents and agree to whatever player is ultimately paid.
In real life many hire employees and offer a salary or rate of pay prior to doing work, then are paid after the fact.
You also have to consider by the time of free agency players have made names for themselves in the sport. Teams are also getting all the recognition that comes with that name. MLB is a business not just a sport.
You have too many guys that, once they get paid, especially on a long term deal they are a different player.
In real life, you earn year to year. If you don’t produce, there are consequences.
Well, which guys were you thinking of who “changed” after getting a Ling term deal? Outside of Anthony Rendon, that is. You said, “too many,” so there must be a list.
Further, your comparison of baseball contracts to “real life” employment situations is flawed. First, the players who make it to MLB have already performed well beyond what everybody else has. They’re among the best in the world at simething people are willing to pay to see. Can you say the same? The vast majority toil in obscurity and in less than great conditions to get to MLB. Then, they have to perform or no one is offering them the sort of contract you’re complaining about. Yes, those contracts are guaranteed. Why? It prevents owners from pulling a Charles Commisky screwing of Eddie Cicotte.
Finally, baseball careers are short. Very short. Billions are made in the industry. Players should get a cut.
The Padres have several of them. Javier Baez. Jeimer Candelario (though I contend he only had one good year before), Carlos Rodon. Kris Bryant. Just off the top of my head recently, not going into the past.
I know baseball careers are short. Mine was only seven years and never saw the bigs. Talk about obscurity. I was paid on what I earned.
How about paying more in the pre-arb days in exchange for a pro-wrestling style option for owners. Should a player get injured and miss say 50% or more of a season, the team has the option of extending a year with the terms rolling over to the next year and adding a year at the deal’s end?
I’d like to congratulate the X-man, Xavier Edwards on his juicy $313,489 bonus.
A lot of guys on this list are first rounders or International signing period headliners, so are millionaires already, but to them it is an acknowledgement of a job well done this year, and to the scattering of late round draft and International down-list signings, it’s a big fat wad they hope to be getting used to
Elly and Hunter Greene made some nice bonuses and we’ll deserved.
Something about the look in Bobby Witt Jr.’s eyes that seems…. evil