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Dodgers set MLB record payroll at $270M; average is $4.2M

FILE - In this March 15, 2015, file photo, Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Clayton Kershaw works against the Seattle Mariners in the first inning of a spring training baseball game in Peoria, Ariz. The average salary when opening-day rosters are finalized Sunday will break the $4 million barrier for the first time, according to a study of all major league contracts by The Associated Press. Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw tops players at $31 million and Los Angeles leads teams at nearly $273 million, easily a record.(AP Photo/Lenny Ignelzi, File) FILE - In this March 15, 2015, file photo, Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Clayton Kershaw works against the Seattle Mariners in the first inning of a spring training baseball game in Peoria, Ariz. The average salary when opening-day rosters are finalized Sunday will break the $4 million barrier for the first time, according to a study of all major league contracts by The Associated Press. Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw tops players at $31 million and Los Angeles leads teams at nearly $273 million, easily a record.(AP Photo/Lenny Ignelzi, File)

By Associated Press April 5, 2015 1 min read

NEW YORK (AP) – The Los Angeles Dodgers set a baseball record with a $270 million opening-day payroll, including nearly $44 million going to players no longer on the team.

Major League Baseball’s average salary on opening day Sunday also set a mark at $4.2 million, according to calculations by The Associated Press. That is up 6.3 percent from last year’s opening average of $3.95 million and is a 15 percent rise over two years.

Texas Rangers general manager Jon Daniels says “it’s a shocking number for the average family to think about.”

The Dodgers’ payroll includes $43.8 million for 2015 to cover the costs of players traded and let go.

At the bottom are Houston ($69.1 million) and Miami ($69.2 million). A record 508 players earn $1 million or more.