Starting pitchers are typically the highest-paid position in baseball, and these salaries show exactly how much value teams place on having an ace at the top of the rotation.
Even though they only take the mound once out of every five days, starting pitchers can impose their will on a game more than any other position on the field. For five, six, seven, or even more innings, the starting pitcher controls the outcome of every single pitch his team is in the field for.
Here’s a breakdown of the highest paid starting pitchers in 2022, followed by the table with salaries at the bottom.
Max Scherzer is still arguably the best pitcher in baseball at age 37. Scherzer came up with the Diamondbacks but was traded to Detroit in 2009.
Scherzer won the first of his three Cy Young Awards in 2013, and two more as a member of the Nationals in 2016 and 2017. He has two no-hitters, and prior to 2022 signed a three-year, $130 million contract with the Mets.
Just across town in the Bronx, Gerritt Cole is the Yankees’ ace and is the next highest paid pitcher. Cole has made four All-Star appearances in three different uniforms: Pirates, Astros, and Yankees. Ahead of the 2020 season, Cole signed a $324 million contract over nine years.
Jacob deGrom is a part of the scariest one-two punch in baseball with Scherzer. The Mets’ star has struggled with injuries in his career, but when healthy can be the most dominant pitcher in the game.
He won back-to-back Cy Young Awards in 2018 and 2019 and has a career ERA of just 2.50. The Mets and deGrom agreed on a five-year, $137.5 million contract in 2019.
Trevor Bauer ranked fourth in highest paid pitchers before his suspension. While he was on leave, he was still getting paid by the Dodgers but that is no longer the case.
Stephen Strasburg has spent his whole career with the Washington Nationals after making his debut in 2010. He’s a three-time All-Star in 2012, 2016, and 2017 but the crowning achievement of his career is his 2019 World Series MVP award. He signed a $245 million contract in 2019 for seven years.
David Price may not have the role with the Dodgers now that he once did earlier in his career in the American League, but he’s still making money off the seven-year, $217 million contract that he signed with the Red Sox ahead of the 2016 season. Price is a five-time All-Star and won the AL Cy Young in 2012.
Chris Sale is also getting paid thanks to Boston, but he’s still a valued member of the Red Sox. Sale signed a five-year, $145 million contract extension with the Red Sox in 2019. Sale is a seven-time All-Star and led the American League in strikeouts in both 2015 and 2017.
Zack Wheeler was drafted by San Francisco but was traded to the Mets in 2011 as part of a deal for Carlos Beltran. When he hit free agency in 2019, he signed a five-year, $118 million contract with Philadelphia. He was an All-Star in 2021 when he led the National League in strikeouts.
Marcus Stroman spent his first several seasons in Toronto before he was traded to the Mets at the deadline in 2019. He signed a three-year deal with the Cubs ahead of the 2022 season that’s worth $71 million. Stroman was an All-Star in 2019 and earned a Gold Glove Award in 2017.
Justin Verlander has been one of the best pitchers in baseball for well over a decade. During his career with the Tigers from 2005-2017, he was dominant including a historic 2011 season leading the American League in wins, earned run average, and strikeouts. He won the Cy Young and MVP awards.
The Tigers traded Verlander to Houston in 2017 where he went on to win the World Series and still be one of the top aces in the game.
Highest-Paid MLB Pitchers
Name
Team
Salary
Max Scherzer
Mets
$43,333,333
Gerritt Cole
Yankees
$36,000,000
Jacob deGrom
Mets
$36,000,000
Trevor Bauer
Dodgers
$35,333,333
Stephen Strasburg
Nationals
$35,000,000
David Price
Dodgers
$32,000,000
Chris Sale
Red Sox
$30,000,000
Zack Wheeler
Phillies
$26,000,000
Marcus Stroman
Cubs
$25,000,000
Justin Verlander
Astros
$25,000,000
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