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MLB
Kansas City Royals 2026 Financial Summary
A current summary of Kansas City Royals 2026 player cap & cash figures.
RELATED:
MLB 2027 Contract Options Watchlist
Summary
- Adjusted Payroll Total $146,138,780 / 18th
- Cash Total $151,151,836 / 17th
2026 Active Roster
| RK | Player |
|
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Bobby Witt Jr.
(SS, 26)
|
$26,252,525 |
| 2 |
Seth Lugo
(SP, 36)
|
$23,000,000 |
| 3 |
Michael Wacha
(SP, 35)
|
$17,000,000 |
| 4 |
Salvador Perez
(C, 36)
|
$12,500,000 |
| 5 |
Maikel Garcia
(3B, 26)
|
$11,500,000 |
| 6 |
Kris Bubic
(SP, 28)
|
$6,150,000 |
| 7 |
Vinnie Pasquantino
(1B, 28)
|
$5,550,000 |
| 8 |
Lane Thomas
(CF, 30)
|
$5,250,000 |
| 9 |
John Schreiber
(RP, 32)
|
$3,715,000 |
| 10 |
Bailey Falter
(RP, 29)
|
$3,600,000 |
| 11 |
Kyle Isbel
(CF, 29)
|
$2,700,000 |
| 12 |
Nick Mears
(RP, 29)
|
$1,900,000 |
| 13 |
Elias Diaz
(C, 35)
|
$1,721,925 |
| 14 |
Michael Massey
(2B, 28)
|
$1,570,000 |
| 15 |
Daniel Lynch
(RP, 29)
|
$1,025,000 |
| 16 |
Starling Marte
(OF, 37)
|
$1,000,000 |
| 17 |
Alex Lange
(RP, 30)
|
$900,000 |
| 18 |
Lucas Erceg
(RP, 31)
|
$803,500 |
| 19 |
Noah Cameron
(SP, 26)
|
$802,000 |
| 20 |
Isaac Collins
(LF, 28)
|
$799,750 |
| 21 |
Stephen Kolek
(SP, 29)
|
$784,770 |
| 22 |
Jac Caglianone
(RF, 23)
|
$784,000 |
| 23 |
Carter Jensen
(C, 22)
|
$781,150 |
| 24 |
Nick Loftin
(SS, 27)
|
$727,811 |
| 25 |
Luinder Avila
(RP, 24)
|
$659,018 |
| 26 |
Steven Cruz
(RP, 27)
|
$625,650 |
2026 Injured List
Salaries from players who have been placed on the injured list, still counting against the payroll.
| RK | Player |
|
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Carlos Estevez
(RP, 33)
|
$11,100,000 |
| 2 |
Jonathan India
(2B, 29)
|
$8,000,000 |
| 3 |
Matt Strahm
(RP, 34)
|
$7,500,000 |
| 4 |
Cole Ragans
(SP, 28)
|
$4,416,667 |
| 5 |
James McArthur
(SP, 29)
|
$810,000 |
| 6 |
Alec Marsh
(SP, 28)
|
$797,500 |
2026 Dead Money
Leftover salaries from players who have been traded or released, or buyouts for declined options.
| RK | Player |
|
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Randal Grichuk
(RF, 34)
|
$0 |
2026 Luxury Tax Payroll Totals
Tax figures based on payroll data only. Outside revenue sources will be adjusted when available after the regular season.
| Competitive Balance Tax Threshold | $244,000,000 | |
| Guaranteed Contracts | $132,102,099 | 15th |
| Injured Contracts | $32,624,167 | - |
| Retained Contracts | $0 | - |
| Player Benefits | $18,000,000 | - |
| Minor League Contracts | $2,700,000 | - |
| Pre-Arbitration Bonus Pool Contribution | $1,666,666 | - |
| Projected Tax Payroll | $184,720,194 | - |
|
Projected Tax Bill
This team is currently a tax repeater at 20%.
|
$0 | - |
Glossary
First-Time Payor:
- 20% for exceeding by $20M or less
- 32% for exceeding by $20M-$40M
- 62.5% for exceeding by $40M-$60M
- 80% for exceeding by $60M+
Second-Time Payor:
- 30% for exceeding by $20M or less
- 42% for exceeding by $20M-$40M
- 75% for exceeding by $40M-$60M
- 90% for exceeding by $60M+
Third-Time (or more) Payor:
- 50% for exceeding by $20M or less
- 62% for exceeding by $20M-$40M
- 95% for exceeding by $40M-$60M
- 110% for exceeding by $60M+
Teams are considered “tax repeaters” when they exceed the threshold in consecutive seasons. They revert back to First-Time status after completing one season below the threshold.
Luxury Tax salaries are based on the Average Annual Value of all 40-man roster contracts, guaranteed contracts on the 60-day IL, retained salary from trades or releases, buried contracts in the minor leagues, a player benefits stipend, and the required pre-arbitration bonus pool contribution.
Players who are acquired or have contracts purchased during the season are calculated at a rate based on the amount of league days remaining in the season. If multiple years remain on the contract at the time of acquisition, the AAV is recalculated based on the total guaranteed money remaining.
Pre-Arbitration Players (0-3 years of service) are currently estimated at $820,000 ($40k above the $780,000 MLB minimum) Arbitration Salaries (3-6 years of service) are currently estimated based on the level of service (Arbitration 1-4), and Spotrac’s current Market Valuation for that player.
Player Benefits account for insurance, room & board stipends, transportation fees, etc…
The MLB Pre-Arbitration Bonus Pool is a $50 million pot of money created in the 2022 CBA to reward top-performing young players (under three years of service time) who are not yet eligible for salary arbitration. It's funded by all 30 teams, split into award bonuses and a statistical pool based on a version of Wins Above Replacement (WAR).
2026 Minor
Salaries from players currently in the system. denotes a buried salary that counts against the payroll.
| RK | Player |
|
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Tyler Tolbert
(SS, 28)
|
$108,862 |
| 2 |
Eli Morgan
(RP, 30)
|
$101,612 |
| 3 |
Mason Black
(SP, 26)
|
$66,736 |
| 4 |
Mitch Spence
(RP, 28)
|
$41,710 |
| 5 |
Eric Cerantola
(RP, 26)
|
$8,342 |
| 6 |
Ben Kudrna
(SP, 23)
|
$0 |
| 7 |
Steven Zobac
(SP, 25)
|
$0 |
| 8 |
Kameron Misner
(CF, 28)
|
$0 |
| 9 |
John Rave
(CF, 28)
|
$0 |
| 10 |
Ryan Bergert
(SP, 26)
|
$0 |
