The 2011 MLB team payrolls saw a downward shift from some of the big market clubs while some of the smaller market teams increased spending.
Leading all MLB team payrolls are the New York Yankees, who bumped up player salaries 2.3 percent this year to a record $206.3 million.
The Texas Rangers had the largest percentage increase of any MLB club, raising player salaries by 67.1 percent this season for a total payroll of $92.3 million.
In contrast, the Kansas City Royals had the largest reduction in player salaries among MLB’s 30 clubs. The Royals dropped their payroll 50 percent, for a total of $36.1 million.
Thirteen MLB clubs have payrolls exceeding $100 million, with the Philadelphia Phillies, Boston Red Sox, Los Angeles Angels and Chicago White Sox rounding out the top five.
| 2011 MLB Team Payrolls | |||||||||||||||||||
| Team | 2010 | 2011 | % Change | ||||||||||||||||
| New York Yankees | $206.3 | $201.7 | -2.3% | ||||||||||||||||
| Philadelphia Phillies | $141.9 | $173.0 | +21.9% | ||||||||||||||||
| Boston Red Sox | $162.7 | $161.4 | -0.8% | ||||||||||||||||
| Los Angeles Angels | $105.0 | $139.0 | +32.4% | ||||||||||||||||
| Chicago White Sox | $108.2 | $129.3 | +19.4% | ||||||||||||||||
| Chicago Cubs | $146.9 | $125.5 | -14.6% | ||||||||||||||||
| New York Mets | $132.7 | $120.1 | -9.5% | ||||||||||||||||
| San Francisco Giants | $97.8 | $118.2 | +20.8% | ||||||||||||||||
| Minnesota Twins | $97.6 | $112.7 | +15.6% | ||||||||||||||||
| Detroit Tigers | $122.9 | $105.7 | -14.0% | ||||||||||||||||
| St. Louis Cardinals | $93.6 | $105.4 | +12.7% | ||||||||||||||||
| Los Angeles Dodgers | $94.9 | $103.8 | +9.3% | ||||||||||||||||
| Texas Rangers | $55.3 | $92.3 | +67.1% | ||||||||||||||||
| Colorado Rockies | $84.2 | $88.0 | +4.5% | ||||||||||||||||
| Atlanta Braves | $84.4 | $87.0 | +3.1% | ||||||||||||||||
| Seattle Mariners | $98.4 | $86.4 | -12.1% | ||||||||||||||||
| Milwaukee Brewers | $81.1 | $85.5 | +5.4% | ||||||||||||||||
| Baltimore Orioles | $81.6 | $85.3 | +4.5% | ||||||||||||||||
| Cincinnati Reds | $72.4 | $76.2 | +5.2% | ||||||||||||||||
| Houston Astros | $92.4 | $70.7 | -23.5% | ||||||||||||||||
| Oakland A’s | $51.6 | $66.6 | +28.8% | ||||||||||||||||
| Washington Nationals | $61.4 | $63.7 | +3.7% | ||||||||||||||||
| Toronto Blue Jays | $62.7 | $62.5 | -0.3% | ||||||||||||||||
| Florida Marlins | $55.6 | $56.9 | +2.3% | ||||||||||||||||
| Arizona Diamondbacks | $60.7 | $53.6 | -11.7% | ||||||||||||||||
| Cleveland Indians | $61.2 | $49.2 | -19.6% | ||||||||||||||||
| Pittsburgh Pirates | $34.9 | $46.0 | +31.8% | ||||||||||||||||
| San Diego Padres | $37.8 | $45.9 | +21.3% | ||||||||||||||||
| Tampa Bay Rays | $71.9 | $41.9 | -41.7% | ||||||||||||||||
| Kansas City Royals | $72.3 | $36.1 | -50.0% | ||||||||||||||||
