It’ll be similar to where 2025 landed, and perhaps a tick lower — at least to begin the season…So a conservative estimate would have the Phillies spending almost $100 million more on player payroll in 2025 (including tax) than they did in 2024. No one should expect a similar year-to-year increase from 2025 to 2026.
But there are factors at play. The biggest, perhaps, are potential changes to the sport’s financial structure beginning in 2027. There will be a new collective bargaining agreement (at some point). Assuming there is no salary cap in an eventual agreement, clubs can expect the luxury tax thresholds to rise because they have in every new basic agreement. The league is determined to centralize local TV revenues; that will affect clubs like the Phillies, who have one of the more favorable rights deals in baseball.