Baseball is one of the most popular sports in United States and also regarded as the most played sports all over the world. Major League Baseball (MLB) is a top tier baseball championship organized in the United States which has produced many of the amazing baseball legends. The baseball players participating in the MLB are counted among the highest paid athletes as they get an enormous salary from their teams besides their personal earnings from endorsements. Many great baseball players such as Carlos Beltran and Alex Rodriguez are also counted among the highest paid baseball players in the world for their huge career earnings.
Baseball legend Alex Rodriguez earned a total of $466,963,699 as his career earnings, which makes him the highest paid baseball player, in fact the richest athlete of all genres. Many novices of baseball have also became quite wealthy as they get a huge amount of money as their contract fee with many famous MLB teams, and are likely to make it to the rich list sooner.
Highest paid baseball players 2015:
Sporty Ghost has taken an initiative to enlist the highest paid baseball players in 2015. The question everyone frequently ask about is that who is the highest paid baseball player? Let’s check it out.
Highest paid baseball player No. 10: Robinson Cano
Robinson Cano is a Dominican-American professional baseball player and currently plays for the Seattle Mariners in the MLB. Cano made his debut in MLB on 3 May, 2005 for the New York Yankees. In 2009, he was named the World Series Champion and in 2011, he became the Home Run Derby Champion. He is at No. 10 in our list of top 10 highest paid baseball players 2015.
Robinson Cano also won the MLB All-Star six times till now. He signed a 10-year contract with the Seattle Mariners and will be a free agent in 2024. His contract with Seattle Mariners is worth a total of $240 million. He will earn an annual salary of $24 million until his contract ends in 2024. In 2015, he is earning a salary of $24 million that includes a base salary of $24 million this year.
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Highest paid baseball player No. 9: Prince Fielder
Prince Fielder is an American professional baseball first baseman and plays in MLB for Texas Rangers. He was debuted in MLB on 13 June, 2005 while playing for the Milwaukee Brewers. Fielder was named the NL Home Run leader in 2007 and from 2007-2012, he became the Silver Slugger award winner three times. He also won the MLB All-Star a total five times till now. Prince Fielder is currently in a 9-year contract with his team, Texas Rangers and will be a free agent in 2021.
Prince Fielder is currently taking the 9th place in our list of top 10 highest paid baseball players 2015. His contract with Texas Rangers is worth of $214 million while his yearly salary being of $23 million till his contract ends in 2021. In 2015, Prince Fielder is earning a salary of $24 million which includes a basic annual salary with Texas Rangers.
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Highest paid baseball player No. 8: Albert Pujols
Like Robinson Cano, Pujols is also a Dominican-American professional baseball player who currently plays for Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in the Major League Baseball. The famous first baseman made his debut in MLB for the St. Louis Cardinals on 2 April, 2001. From 2006-2011, Pujols was named the World Series Champion two times and became the NL MVP Award winner three times in his baseball career. He also won the MLB All-Star nine times till now. His 10-year contract with Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim will be valid till 2022. His contract with the club is worth of $240 million and this huge money is his guaranteed income.
According to the contract signing, he will earn an annual salary of $24 million until 2022. In 2015, Pujols is earning a base salary of $24 million and the rest of his incomes comes from the endorsements. We’ve consider Albert Pujols for the No. 8 position in our list of top 10 highest paid baseball players 2015.
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Highest paid baseball player No. 7: Felix Hernandez
Felix Hernandez is a Venezuelan professional baseball player who plays as a starting pitcher for the Seattle Mariners in the MLB. Felix made his debut in professional baseball in MLB on 4 August, 2005 for the Seattle Mariners. From 2009-2014, it was Felix Hernandez who was named as the All-Star five times and also became the Al ERA Leader in 2014. In 2009, he won the AL Win co-leader too. Felix Hernandez remains at No. 7 spot in our list of top 10 highest paid baseball players 2015.
Presently, he is in a contract of 7-years with the Seattle Mariners and will be a free agent in 2020. The contract with the Mariners is worth of a total $175 million. Felix’s annual income as a club salary will be approximately $25 million till 2020. In 2015, he is earning a total salary of $24,857,142 as a basic club salary.
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Highest paid baseball player No. 6: Zack Greinke
Zack Greinke started his career as an American professional baseball pitch starter and currently plays for the Los Angeles Dodgers in the MLB. His MLB debut was made on 22 May, 2004 for the Kansas City Royals. Greinke was named the All-Star two times from 2009 to 2014 and in 2009, he became the MLB ERA Leader and also winning the NL CY Young Award. He is the 6th highest paid baseball player in our list.
Zack Greinke made a 6-year contract with his current club Los Angeles Dodgers. The contract will be exceeded until 2019, making him a free agent. His contract is worth of around $147 million, being his guaranteed income until 2019. As the contract signs, his annual earning is of $24.5 million which will end in 2019. In 2015, Zack is earning around $25 million as a basic club salary.
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Highest paid baseball player No. 5: Ryan Howard
Ryan Howard is an American professional MLB baseball first baseman and presently plays for Philadelphia Phillies. We have selected him for the 5th position in our list of top 10 highest paid baseball players 2015. Howard made his MLB debut on 2 September, 2004 as a Philadelphia Phillies skipper.
From 2006 to 2010, he was named five times as the All-Star and in 2005, he became the NL Rookie of the Year. In 2008, he was the winner of World Series Champion. He is presently in a five-year contract with the Philadelphia Phillies which will end in 2018. The contract is worth of a total $125 million, while his yearly salary is estimated around $25 million until 2018. In 2015, Ryan Howard is pocketing an annual $25 million cash as a basic.
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Highest paid baseball player No. 4: Cliff Lee
This American professional started his career as a baseball starting pitcher and currently plays for Philadelphia Phillies in the MLB. His debut was made in MLB on September 15, 2002 for the Cleveland Indians. His name was inducted as the All-Star four times from 2008 to 2013 and became the AL Comeback Player of the Year in 2008. He won the NL CY Young award in the same year. Cliff Lee is presently tied with the Philadelphia Phillies in a 5-year contract and will be a free agent in 2017.
The contract ensured him a huge sum of money, a total worth of $120 million, till his contract ends in 2017. He is currently earning a total yearly salary of $25 million as per the contract he signed. Cliff Lee makes himself comfortable at No. 4 in our list of top 10 highest paid baseball players 2015.
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Highest paid baseball player No. 3: Josh Hamilton
Josh Hamilton is an American professional baseball outfielder who is currently playing for Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in the MLB. His league debut was made on April 2, 2007 as a Cincinnati Reds skipper. In 2012, he was named the AL Batting Champion and AL MVP simultaneously. He also won the ALCS MVP in the same year.
Josh Hamilton takes No. 3 place in our list of top 10 highest paid baseball players 2015. He is currently holding a 5-year contract with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, which will expire in 2019, making him a free agent. The contract guarantees him a $125 million worth income till his contract ends in 2019. In 2015, Josh Hamilton is earning approximately $25 million as his annual salary that includes a base salary of $23 million.
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Highest paid baseball player No. 2: Justin Verlander
Justin Verlander, the starting pitcher in MLB, is an American professional baseball player. He currently plays for the Detroit Tigers in the Major League Baseball. Verlander made his MLB debut on 4 July, 2005 for Detroit Tigers. He has inducted in the All-Star for six times, from 2007-2013 and in 2011, he became the AL MVP and winner of NL CY Young award. Current he is in a 7-year contract with the Detroit Tigers, which will be valid till 2021, leaving him as a free agent.
The contract is worth a total of $180 million, making it a guaranteed income for him. His average yearly salary remains $25,714,286 according to the signing. In 2015, he is earning a total estimated salary of $28 million as a basic annual income. Justin Verlander stays at No. 2 in our list of top 10 highest paid baseball players 2015.
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Highest paid baseball player No. 1: Clayton Kershaw
Here he comes, the highest paid baseball player, Clayton Kershaw. He is an American professional baseball player and as a starting pitcher, he is currently playing for the Los Angeles Dodgers in MLB. Clayton played his MLB debut match on 25 May, 2008 for the Los Angeles Dodgers. From 2011-2014, his name was included in All-Star list for four times and became the NL MVP in 2014. Clayton grabbed the NL CY Young Award three times. With his current club, Los Angeles Dodgers, Clayton signed a 7-year contract which will be valid till 2021.
The contract guaranteed him an income of $215 million with an average annual salary of approximately $30 million, till his contract ends in 2021. In 2015, he cashed an income of around $32 million including a base salary of $30 million. Clayton Kershaw is indeed the man we are looking for. He is the highest paid baseball player ever in the history. The No. 1 spot is quite appropriate for him in our list.
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There are many other baseball players who participate in the MLB, such as Mark Teixeira and Cole Hamels also deserve their place in the list of top 10 highest paid baseball players 2015. Mark Teixeira signed an 8-year contract with New York Yankees which worth $180 million while Cole Hamels made a $144 million contract with Philadelphia Phillies for 6 years.
Anyone can be jealous at them anyway.
