The New York Yankees are doing well right now, with the emerging Juan Soto, the resurgent Aaron Judge and a 33-17 record, tied for the best in the American League. Their owner would like you to know that success doesn’t come cheap.
Speaking to the New York Post, Yankees chairman Hal Steinbrenner claimed that the team cannot maintain its record-high payroll this season:
“I’ll be honest: Payrolls at the level we’re at now are simply not financially sustainable for us,” Steinbrenner said. “It wouldn’t be sustainable for the vast majority of owners [groups]given the luxury tax we have to pay.”
Steinbrenner also reportedly said, “I don’t believe I should have a $300 million payroll to win a championship.”
The Yankees opened the season with a payroll of $296.6 million for their 26-man roster, according to Cot’s Contracts, an increase of $19 million from last season and the largest in Yankees history. However, it only ranks third in the MLB, behind the New York Mets ($328.7 million) and Los Angeles Dodgers ($308.4 million).
Forbes currently values the Yankees at $7.55 billion, with estimated revenue of $679 million and operating income of $2.1 million.
What does this mean for the Yankees and Juan Soto?
It’s an atypical attitude for the Yankees owner to complain about the affordability of the sport, especially when the Dodgers handed out more than $1 billion in contracts last season. It’s also not what Yankee fans want to hear if Soto remains a free agent and plays himself into what will likely be one of the biggest contracts in MLB history.
It’s hard to imagine Soto Shohei breaking Ohtani’s $700 million record for the largest contract in sports without a similarly outrageous delay, but it seems entirely possible to estimate the real, inflation-adjusted value of the contract (somewhere in the close to $450 million).
The good news is that Steinbrenner said the Yankees will have a little more financial freedom next season:
“There is a significant amount of money coming in [next offseason]Steinbrenner said. “We didn’t make a lot of money last season, and that’s why we’re where we are today.”
The list of New York free agents and their 2024 salaries via Cot’s includes Soto ($31 million), Gleyber Torres ($14.2 million), Alex Verdugo ($8.7 million), Clay Holmes ($6 million), Tommy Kahnle ( $5.75 million), Jonathan Loáisiga ($2.5 million) and Caleb Ferguson ($2.4 million). Those non-Soto players would leave some holes to fill, but they represent a total of $40 million in potential slack.
In the meantime, the Yankees can enjoy a team that has looked even better than expected in 2024, buoyed by Soto, Judge and a rotation that has been one of the best in the MLB despite reigning Cy Young winner Gerrit Cole being sidelined .
