MLB Financials by Year

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1984 Baseball Payrolls

This is a team-by-team payroll listings for the 1984 season. The league per-player average was $328,060 and the average team payroll was $8,201,494. You can also view figures for 1983 or 1985. Other financial information is available for many seasons using the tool on the right.

1984 PAYROLLS 1984 PAYROLLS 1983/1985 RANK TEAM AVERAGE TOTAL 1 New York Yankees  $458,544   $11,463,600  2 Chicago White Sox  $447,281   $11,182,025  3 California Angels  $431,431   $10,785,775  4 Chicago Cubs  $422,194   $10,554,850  5 Atlanta Braves  $402,869   $10,071,725  6 Philadelphia Phillies  $401,476   $10,036,900  7 Milwaukee Brewers  $385,215   $9,630,375  8 Houston Astros  $382,991   $9,574,775  9 Oakland Athletics  $382,027   $9,550,675  10 Detroit Tigers  $371,332   $9,283,300  11 Montreal Expos  $368,557   $9,213,925  12 Baltimore Orioles  $360,204   $9,005,100  13 Pittsburgh Pirates  $330,661   $8,266,525  14 Los Angeles Dodgers  $316,530   $7,913,250  15 San Diego Padres  $311,199   $7,779,975  16 Boston Red Sox  $297,878   $7,446,950  17 Toronto Blue Jays  $295,632   $7,390,800  18 Kansas City Royals  $291,160   $7,279,000  19 St. Louis Cardinals  $290,886   $7,272,150  20 New York Mets  $282,952   $7,073,800  21 San Francisco Giants  $282,132   $7,053,300  22 Cincinnati Reds  $269,019   $6,725,475  23 Texas Rangers  $247,081   $6,177,025  24 Minnesota Twins  $172,024   $4,300,600  25 Seattle Mariners  $168,505   $4,212,625  26 Cleveland Indians  $159,774   $3,994,350

Source: The Sporting News 1985 Baseball Guide.

Baseball Economics sources/bibliography:
Business of Baseball, The by Albert Powers
Baseball, Inc.: The National Pastime As Big Business by Frank P. Jozsa Jr.
Baseball and Billions: A Probing Look Inside the Big Business of Our National Pastime by Andrew Zimbalist
Built to Win: Inside Stories and Leadership Strategies from Baseball's Winningest GM by John Schuerholz
Free Agency and Competitive Balance in Baseball by Ronald W. Cox
The Formation, Sometimes Absorption and Mostly Inevitable Demise of 18 Professional Baseball Organizations, 1871 to Present by David Pietrusza.
Getting in the Game: Inside Baseball's Winter Meetings by Josh Lewin
State of Baseball Management: Decision-Making in the Best and Worst Teams, 1993-2003 by Scott Barzilla
In the Best Interests of Baseball? The Revolutionary Reign of Bud Selig by Andrew Zimbalist
May the Best Team Win: Baseball Economics and Public Policy, by Andrew Zimbalist
The Inside Pitch ... and More: Baseball's Business and the Public Trust by Gene A. Budig
Early Innings: A Documentary History of Baseball, 1825-1908 by Dean A. Sullivan.
Middle Innings: A Documentary History of Baseball, 1900-1948 by Dean A. Sullivan.
Late Innings: A Documentary History of Baseball 1945-1972 by Dean A. Sullivan
Total Baseball: The Ultimate Baseball Encyclopedia by John Thorn, et al.