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If your future child shows even a glimmer of athletic potential, you might want to hand them a glove and a bat. In the high-stakes world of professional sports, no major American league is as financially rewarding or as structurally secure as Major League Baseball. Not only do MLB players typically earn more over the course of their careers than NFL or NHL players, but they also enjoy the rare luxury of fully guaranteed contracts. That means if a baseball player signs a $300 million deal and then suffers a career-ending injury the next day, he still gets paid every penny.
That kind of financial security doesn’t exist in football, where contracts are often non-guaranteed and riddled with performance clauses. Even the NBA, where contracts are guaranteed, doesn’t quite stack up in career earnings for most players due to shorter average career lengths. Yes, there are exceptions. LeBron James, Kevin Durant, and Stephen Curry will all retire with massive earnings. But in terms of consistent long-term wealth accumulation, baseball is king.
And the numbers back it up. Over the past two decades, we’ve watched MLB players sign a series of jaw-dropping megadeals: $252 million, $275 million, $330 million, $426.5 million, $500 million, $700 million, and now a record-setting $765 million. Thanks to a combination of talent, timing, and leverage, baseball’s biggest stars have turned their careers into generational fortunes. Below, we’ve compiled the updated leaderboard of the highest career earnings in baseball history. It is an entirely different world from the list we published in 2014, which, frankly, looks quaint by today’s standards.
The Rise of the Mega-Contract
It all started with Alex Rodriguez. In 2000, A-Rod signed a 10-year, $252 million deal with the Texas Rangers. At the time, it was the largest contract in the history of professional sports. Just seven years later, he shattered his own record by inking a new 10-year, $275 million deal with the Yankees. These contracts, combined with lucrative endorsement deals and playoff bonuses, helped Rodriguez retire with over $455 million in career earnings.
Chris McGrath/Getty Images
But baseball didn’t stop there. The following decade saw a wave of billion-dollar spending sprees. The Phillies gave Bryce Harper $330 million. The Angels gave Mike Trout $426.5 million. The Padres gave Manny Machado $350 million. The Yankees gave Aaron Judge $360 million. And then came Shohei Ohtani, who signed a 10-year, $700 million contract with the Dodgers in December 2023, although most of the money is deferred until well into the 2040s.
That record didn’t last long. In December 2024, Juan Soto signed a 15-year, $765 million contract with the New York Mets. It instantly set a new high-water mark not just for baseball, but for all professional sports globally. When you zoom out and look at career earnings, using guaranteed salaries only and excluding endorsements or bonuses, the game’s biggest earners are already in a league of their own.
Top 25 Highest Career Earnings in MLB History
All figures reflect base MLB salary only. Endorsements, bonuses, and deferred interest are not included.
- Alex Rodriguez – $455.2 million (1994 to 2016)
- Justin Verlander – $419.2 million (2005 to present)
- Miguel Cabrera – $400.4 million (2003 to 2023)
- Max Scherzer – $366.6 million (2008 to present)
- Albert Pujols – $346.5 million (2001 to 2022)
- Zack Greinke – $338.5 million (2004 to present)
- Stephen Strasburg – $320.5 million (2010 to present)
- Mike Trout – $319.3 million (2011 to present)
- Clayton Kershaw – $307.2 million (2008 to present)
- David Price – $271.0 million (2008 to 2022)
- Bryce Harper – $256.8 million (2012 to present)
- Manny Machado – $253.5 million (2012 to present)
- Robinson Canó – $248.7 million (2005 to 2022)
- Aaron Judge – $236.0 million (2016 to present)
- Gerrit Cole – $230.1 million (2013 to present)
- Jon Lester – $198.0 million (2006 to 2021)
- CC Sabathia – $193.0 million (2001 to 2019)
- Chris Sale – $182.5 million (2010 to present)
- Anthony Rendon – $180.0 million (2013 to present)
- Jason Heyward – $179.5 million (2010 to present)
- Joey Votto – $175.0 million (2007 to 2023)
- Yu Darvish – $173.0 million (2012 to present)
- Nolan Arenado – $170.0 million (2013 to present)
- Carlos Correa – $168.0 million (2015 to present)
- Troy Tulowitzki – $164.0 million (2006 to 2019)
Looking Ahead: The $500M, $700M, and $765M Club
There’s a new class of players on deck poised to eclipse the current leaders. Shohei Ohtani’s $700 million contract is technically the largest in history, though only $2 million per year will be paid during the contract term. Most of his earnings won’t count toward his career total for decades. Juan Soto, on the other hand, is earning his $765 million in real time. If he plays through the full deal, he will end his career as the first baseball player to actually take home more than $700 million in guaranteed MLB salary.
And then there’s Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who signed a 14-year, $500 million extension with the Blue Jays in 2025. If all goes according to plan, he could be the third member of this ultra-exclusive club.
One thing is clear. Baseball’s financial ceiling is nowhere near its peak, and the next generation is already cashing in.
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