The Los Angeles Dodgers, baseball’s two-time defending champions, will pay a record-smashing $169.4 million in competitive balance tax (CBT) for the 2025 season, reports the Associated Press. That is based on a $417.3 million CBT payroll, easily the highest in baseball. The 2025 Dodgers are, by a wide margin, the most expensive roster in baseball history.
The CBT threshold was $241 million in 2025. Tax rates escalate the more you exceed the threshold and also based on how many consecutive years you pay CBT. The Dodgers are a repeat offender and were hit with the highest tax rates, which include a 110% tax on every dollar spent over $301 million. That $301 million threshold is known as the “Steve Cohen tax,” after the Mets‘ owner.
CBT payroll is based on the average annual value of player contracts, not the player’s actual salary in that season. Cot’s Baseball Contracts estimates the Dodgers’ actual cash payroll at $347.0 million for 2025. Between a $347.0 million actual payroll and the $169.4 million CBT bill, the Dodgers will pay approximately $516.4 million for their championship roster this past season.
A record-tying nine teams paid CBT this season. Here are the nine teams and their tax bills:
|
Dodgers |
$417,341,608 |
$169,375,768 |
|
Mets |
$346,670,456 |
$91,637,501 |
|
$319,522,564 |
$61,774,820 |
|
|
$314,329,912 |
$56,062,903 |
|
|
$286,135,551 |
$13,609,719 |
|
|
$270,351,396 |
$6,992,447 |
|
|
$248,859,139 |
$1,496,828 |
|
|
$245,991,459 |
$1,497,438 |
|
|
$241,380,966 |
$190,483 |
That’s just under $403 million total in CBT. Per Article XXIII(H) of the collective bargaining agreement, the first $3.5 million of that $403 million goes toward player benefits. 50% of the remainder is used to fund player retirement accounts, and the other 50% is distributed to non-CBT teams by commissioner Rob Manfred based on local revenue growth and other factors.
The Dodgers paid a $103.0 million CBT bill for the 2024 season, which was the previous record. The 2023 Mets are the only other team to rack up a nine-figure CBT bill. They paid $100.8 million that year. Prior to 2023, no team had ever paid more than $43.6 million in CBT in a single season. That number was then eclipsed eight times from 2023-25.
L.A.’s monster tax bill comes not long after manager Dave Roberts came out in favor of a salary cap, though he couched it by saying there would also have to be a “(salary) floor to make those bottom-feeders spend money too.” MLB and the 30 owners are once again expected to pursue a salary cap when the CBA expires next Dec. 1.
