The New York Mets have been no strangers to spending money since being purchased by billionaire Steve Cohen in November of 2020. Since then, the Mets have given out four deals worth $100 million or more.
After making it to the NLCS last season, the Mets have their eyes set on the ultimate prize: the World Series.
After falling to the eventual champions, the Mets spared no expense off the field to beat the Los Angeles Dodgers. As a result, the Mets have edged the Dodgers to maintain the highest payroll in Major League Baseball, per Bob Nightengale of USA Today.
New York Mets right fielder Juan Soto (22) © Sam Navarro-Imagn Images © Sam Navarro-Imagn Images
“The Dodgers, thanks to heavily deferred contracts to Shohei Ohtani and some of their biggest stars, have an opening day payroll of $321.3 million, second to the Mets’ payroll of $323.1 million,” Nightengale wrote, citing MLB’s present-day calculations.
This news has been turning heads on social media. 2025 MLB payrolls: Every team from highest to lowest, full list https://t.co/C6MRIFKJ6t — Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) April 2, 2025 “Highest paid player overall on the highest payroll team right in the center of the photo,” a fan pointed out.
“Rooting against the Dodgers gets even easier,” a fan admitted. The news even hit the LA Times, as the outlet cited this reporting to relay that Los Angeles does not own MLB’s largest payroll this season.
Dodgers don’t boast MLB’s highest payroll.
They can thank deferred contracts to Ohtani, Betts https://t.co/tltnQOd5MY — Los Angeles Times (@latimes) April 2, 2025
While the Dodgers have committed more money in the long term through deferred payments, no team in baseball is committing more to the present than the Mets.
LA’s deferment saves money in the present to lower its payroll and luxury tax totals.
Juan Soto’s recent $765 million blockbuster deal in free agency gave him the largest contract in sports history.
This beat out Shohei Ohtani’s record of $700 million from the previous offseason. A $323.1 million payroll is more than 20 million more than last season’s payroll for the Mets.
The Mets can thank additions like Soto, Clay Holmes, Sean Manaea, and the extension of Pete Alonso for their increased payroll.
