TAMPA — After discussing a trim to the Yankees’ facial hair policy, Hal Steinbrenner took questions about shaving payroll.
The owner, whose team lost last year’s World Series to the Dodgers, was asked if that’s his intention Friday. No team has reduced payroll the season after reaching the World Series since the thrifty Rays did so following the 2008 Fall Classic.
“Our payroll now is almost identical to last year,” Steinbrenner replied. He added that the Yankees’ current payroll is around $307-$308 million and was $310 million last year. “So we’re right there.”
Per Cot’s Contracts, a widely-cited tracker, the Yankees’ projected 2025 payroll is currently $304.7 million for luxury tax purposes. Cot’s also says the Yankees ended 2024 with a $321.1 million payroll for tax purposes. General manager Brian Cashman called Cot’s projections into question.
Teams typically save financial space before hitting their target payroll for in-season moves.
Payroll has been a focus for fans, as many feel the championship-aspiring Yankees have not properly addressed a gaping hole at third base. Some also fear that the club won’t until it sheds more payroll — possibly some of Marcus Stroman’s salary — and that getting under the highest luxury tax penalty threshold, set at $301 million, is more important to the team.
Steinbrenner said the highest threshold, which he’s exceeded in the past, including last season, “is not the concern to me.”
“The concern to me is — I’ve said this till I’m blue in the face, and I had to change my numbers because times have changed from 10 years ago — but we have great people here. We have a good player development system, good young players that have come up,” Steinbrenner said before mentioning Anthony Volpe, Austin Wells and Luis Gil. “Should I really need a $300 million-plus payroll to win a championship? Does having a huge payroll really increase my chances that much of winning a championship? I’m not sure there’s a strong correlation there. Having said that, we’re the New York Yankees. We know what our fans expect. We’re always going to be among the highest in payroll. That’s not going to change, and certainly didn’t change this year. We’re right there.”
While Steinbrenner said he’s not sure about a strong correlation, the Dodgers had baseball’s highest payroll last season. The Rangers spent big before winning it all over the more modest Diamondbacks in 2023.
The Yankees’ projected 2025 payroll, by no means cheap, ranks fourth on Cot’s right now. The Dodgers ($402.3M), Mets ($326.9M) and Phillies ($307.8M) all rank higher.
Earlier in spring training, Cashman was asked about the Yankees’ ability to compete with the Dodgers — who doubled down with a post-championship spending spree this past winter — and Mets’ extravagance in recent years. He noted how teams like the Rays and Orioles have built contenders through different means.
“Ultimately, there’s a lot of different ways to climb the mountain, a lot of different ways to peel that onion,” Cashman said. “And the only thing, in the end, that matters is winning in October.”
On Friday, Steinbrenner was also asked if he would support a salary cap being implemented in the next CBA. The current one is set to expire after the 2026 season, but the topic has been a hot one among fans and pundits with teams like the Yankees, Dodgers and Mets lavishly outspending clubs like the White Sox, Marlins and Rays.
Steinbrenner said he’s focused on 2025, but he reiterated he would conditionally “consider supporting a cap.” He’d want to know what the cap number is, and his support would be “contingent” on the simultaneous implementation of a salary floor, which would force lesser spenders to pony up.
When asked about salary caps and floors, which other pro sports leagues have, Yankees ace Gerrit Cole — who is close with Steinbrenner — told the Daily News the matter wasn’t really on his radar because of a visit MLB commissioner Rob Manfred had with the Bombers last September. At the time, Cole said Manfred “raved about [MLB’s] economic model” while highlighting gains in revenue, competitiveness, growth potential and cash flow. Cole added that Manfred said all this with an emphasis on the future and “didn’t view payroll discrepancy as a huge issue.”
However, Cole knows that Manfred has superiors he must answer to.
“Rob speaks for Rob, and Rob speaks for his opinion on the economics,” Cole said. “But then at the same time, Rob works for the owners. So if the owners direct Rob to go a certain direction, Rob’s got to do what his bosses tell him to do.”
The owner of nine-year, $324 million contract, Cole has “taken a step back” from leading on labor issues since the last CBA was agreed to. Still, he certainly has opinions, and he described payroll discrepancy as an “owner-to-owner issue.”
“There is nothing stopping some of these owners from spending more or spending less,” Cole said. “It’s their discretion and their choice. If they want to be more liquid, they certainly have the ability to take loans out. If they don’t want to be more liquid, then they can do whatever they need to do. Each franchise is different in the totality of their worth. I’m cautioning that fixing some of these issues with a cap and a floor makes it like the players are subsidizing the issues of the owners.
“So I would be reluctant to say that system would be helpful. But I’ll say that with a caveat: I haven’t seen any numbers or anything that would show me otherwise. That’s not to say that those things can’t come up in the future.”
The Yankees might not be the league’s top spenders anymore, but they’re always up there. If a cap were installed, it could take an advantage away from them.
That’s surely something Steinbrenner has considered, but he says he has faith in Cashman and the Yankees’ player development system’s ability to overcome any financial restrictions that he may or may not potentially support in the future.
“We still have a lot of great players coming up, really at all levels, and I expect that to continue,” Steinbrenner said. “You’ve seen our young players and how they contribute, and that also has to be a part. You also need the veterans and the superstars, but the young players have to be a big part of it too.”
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