Late final evening (or early this morning, relying on the place you might be situated), Freddie Freeman hit a walk-off residence run within the backside 18th inning of Sport 3 of the World Collection, propelling the Dodgers to a 2-1 lead over the Blue Jays.
Within the heart-pounding sport and morning-ruining sport (it began at 8:00 pm EST and ended round 2:40 am), Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani carried out at a degree that is laborious to explain in phrases. Listed below are some fundamentals, although: He went 5-for-5 with 4 hits, two residence runs, three runs scored, three RBIs, and 5 walks. 4 of his walks have been intentional, which ties an general MLB file (Barry Bonds was walked deliberately 4 instances in an everyday season sport in Could 1998). Previous to final evening, the file for many bases reached in a World Collection sport belonged to Kenny Lofton, who reached base six instances in Sport 3 of the 1995 World Collection. Shohei reached base NINE instances. The final participant to succeed in base 9 instances in a regular-season sport was Stan Hack, who pulled it off in an 18-inning sport in 1942.
I may go on, and I have not even talked about his postseason accomplishments previous to final evening.
Shohei is the best baseball participant in historical past. It is not even a debate. He isn’t a human being. He is the most effective proof that aliens exist and live amongst us. He is the one MLB participant ever to win three MVP awards unanimously, undertaking that feat between 2021 and 2024. He’ll virtually actually add 2025 to that file, and, in a number of years, he’ll virtually actually prime Barry Bonds’ file of seven MVP awards. And inside only a few extra years after that, he’ll virtually actually break Barry Bonds’ all-time residence run file. Barry’s file is 762. Shohei already has 280. He hits round 55 residence runs a 12 months. At that tempo, he’ll surpass Barry in eight seasons with a number of seasons left within the tank.
And guess what. Shohei is the Dodgers’ STARTING PITCHER TONIGHT at Sport 4.
With all of this in thoughts, you may assume Shohei – the best participant in historical past and simply essentially the most well-known and beloved participant on this planet at the moment – is the highest-paid player at the World Series. In all probability by a protracted shot, proper? Properly, because it seems, he is truly getting paid like a benchwarmer…
(by way of Getty)
Benchwarmer Wage
There are 52 lively gamers on the rosters of the Dodgers and the Blue Jays. This morning, we did the painstaking analysis to compile the 2025 base wage of each single one. When it is all mentioned and accomplished, Shohei is not within the prime 5. Not the highest ten. Not the highest twenty.
He ranks #29.
The participant who ranks instantly above Shohei is Eric Lauer.
Lauer’s path to the World Collection wasn’t precisely glamorous. After a number of respectable years with the Milwaukee Brewers, he was launched following a tough 2023 season that noticed him put up a 6.56 ERA and lose his spot on the 40-man roster. In 2024, he bounced between a number of organizations and continents — signing minor league offers with the Pittsburgh Pirates and Houston Astros, then heading to South Korea to pitch for the Kia Tigers within the KBO League. He helped Kia win the Korean Collection, returned to the U.S. that winter, and signed a minor league contract with the Toronto Blue Jays.
He started 2025 in Triple-A with the Buffalo Bisons, the place he went 1–3 with a 4.50 ERA in 5 begins earlier than being referred to as up by the Blue Jays in late April.
And but, Eric Lauer — a 29-year-old journeyman who spent final season pitching in Korea — makes $200,000 greater than Shohei Ohtani.
The Catch
Shohei’s wage is $2 million per 12 months. That makes him the Twenty ninth-highest-paid participant enjoying within the 2025 World Collection. It is roughly the identical quantity being earned by a center reliever or backup catcher. However, there is a curveball.
Shohei grew to become a Dodger in December 2023 when he signed a $700 million, 10-year contract. On the time, it was the largest contract in sports history. At this time, it’s the second-largest contract in sports activities historical past behind Juan Soto’s 10-year, $765 million contract with the Mets that was signed in late 2024. However Shohei’s contract is extremely uncommon in a key facet. Roughly 97% of the worth is deferred, Bobby Bonilla-style, into years when Shohei will seemingly be lengthy retired.
Underneath the deal’s construction, Shohei solely receives $2 million per 12 months through the contract’s 10 seasons. The remaining $68 million per 12 months will likely be paid out between 2034 and 2043. On the day he signed the deal, Ohtani was 29. When he receives the last $68 million installment in 2043, he will likely be 49. That’s the reason, technically talking, he is the Twenty ninth highest-paid participant on the World Collection.
Now, in fact, it needs to be famous that Shohei additionally occurs to make round $50 million per 12 months from endorsements, so do not go worrying about him an excessive amount of 🙂
Under is a rating of the salaries being paid to the 52 lively roster gamers from the Dodgers and Blue Jays on the World Collection:
- Tyler Glasnow – Dodgers – $32,500,000
- Vladimir Guerrero Jr. – Blue Jays – $28,500,000
- Freddie Freeman – Dodgers – $27,000,000
- Blake Snell – Dodgers – $26,000,000
- Mookie Betts – Dodgers – $25,000,000
- George Springer – Blue Jays – $24,160,000
- Teoscar Hernández – Dodgers – $23,500,000
- Kevin Gausman – Blue Jays – $23,000,000
- Chris Bassitt – Blue Jays – $22,000,000
- Bo Bichette – Blue Jays – $16,500,000
- Will Smith – Dodgers – $16,000,000
- Max Scherzer – Blue Jays – $15,500,000
- Max Muncy – Dodgers – $14,500,000
- Andrés Giménez – Blue Jays – $10,500,000
- Yoshinobu Yamamoto – Dodgers – $10,000,000
- Shane Bieber – Blue Jays – $10,000,000
- Daulton Varsho – Blue Jays – $8,200,000
- Seranthony Domínguez – Blue Jays – $8,000,000
- Tommy Edman – Dodgers – $8,000,000
- Jeff Hoffman – Blue Jays – $7,600,000
- Myles Straw – Blue Jays – $6,000,000
- Isiah Kiner-Falefa – Blue Jays – $6,000,000
- Clayton Kershaw – Dodgers – $5,000,000
- Miguel Rojas – Dodgers – $5,000,000
- Alejandro Kirk – Blue Jays – $4,300,000
- Enrique “Kiké” Hernández – Dodgers – $4,000,000
- Hyeseong Kim – Dodgers – $2,500,000
- Eric Lauer – Blue Jays – $2,200,000
- Shohei Ohtani – Dodgers – $2,000,000
- Blake Treinen – Dodgers – $1,000,000
- Ty France – Blue Jays – $1,000,000
- Addison Barger – Blue Jays – $710,000
- Ernie Clement – Blue Jays – $720,000
- Davis Schneider – Blue Jays – $680,000
- Tyler Heineman – Blue Jays – $700,000
- Brendon Little – Blue Jays – $740,000
- Anthony Banda – Dodgers – $760,000
- Alex Name – Dodgers – $760,000
- Justin Dean – Dodgers – $760,000
- Jack Dreyer – Dodgers – $760,000
- Edgardo Henriquez – Dodgers – $760,000
- Nathan Lukes – Blue Jays – $760,000
- Will Klein – Dodgers – $760,000
- Andy Pages – Dodgers – $760,000
- Justin Wrobleski – Dodgers – $760,000
- Ben Rortvedt – Dodgers – $750,000
- Emmet Sheehan – Dodgers – $760,000
- Roki Sasaki – Dodgers – $760,000
- Louie Varland – Blue Jays – $760,000
- Trey Yesavage – Blue Jays – $760,000
- Mason Fluharty – Blue Jays – $560,000
- Braydon Fisher – Blue Jays – $560,000
