{"id":590368,"date":"2026-02-24T15:30:14","date_gmt":"2026-02-24T15:30:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/590368\/"},"modified":"2026-02-24T15:30:14","modified_gmt":"2026-02-24T15:30:14","slug":"chicago-cubs-highest-paid-players-in-2026-the-teams-top-earners","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/590368\/","title":{"rendered":"Chicago Cubs highest-paid players in 2026: The team\u2019s top earners"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The 2026 season brings renewed focus to the financial backbone of the <a href=\"https:\/\/bolavip.com\/en\/topic\/chicago-cubs\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Chicago Cubs\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Chicago Cubs<\/a>, where contract values quietly outline the team\u2019s hierarchy. Behind the box scores, the payroll tells its own story about who the organization trusts most.<\/p>\n<p>Veterans and cornerstone pieces such as <a href=\"https:\/\/bolavip.com\/en\/topic\/dansby-swanson\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Dansby Swanson\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Dansby Swanson<\/a> occupy prominent spots within that structure. Some deals reflect both performance and expectation, anchoring a roster built to remain competitive over the long haul.<\/p>\n<p>As salaries continue to shape roster construction across the <a href=\"https:\/\/bolavip.com\/en\/mlb\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"MLB\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">MLB<\/a>, their top earners offer a glimpse into its strategic balance of experience, stability and upside, revealing how those commitments align with their broader ambitions.<\/p>\n<p>    Who are the highest-paid Cubs in 2026? <\/p>\n<p>The Chicago Cubs\u2019 highest-paid players are led by Alex Bregman, whose five-year, $175 million contract places him at the top of the team\u2019s salary structure with $32.5 million, according to Spotrac\u2019s 2026 payroll projections. <\/p>\n<p>  <img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"i-amphtml-intrinsic-sizer\" role=\"presentation\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyBoZWlnaHQ9IjEwODAiIHdpZHRoPSIxOTIwIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIvPg==\"\/> Alex Bregman and Dansby Swanson (Source: Chris Coduto\/Getty Images) <\/p>\n<p>His average annual value ranks among the largest commitments on the roster, reflecting the franchise\u2019s major investment in adding a proven impact bat. Right behind him is Dansby Swanson with $25.2 million, one of the cornerstones of the lineup.<\/p>\n<p>These contracts outline the financial core of the roster. The distribution of salary reflects a blend of veteran stability and strategic acquisitions, showing where the organization has chosen to concentrate its biggest investments heading into the 2026 season.<\/p>\n<p> PlayerPositionLuxury taxTypeAlex Bregman3B$32.5 millionFree agentDansby SwansonSS$25.2 millionFree agentShota ImanagaSP$22 millionQualifying offerIan HappLF$22 million ExtensionJameson TaillonSP$17 millionFree agentSeiya SuzukiOF$17 millionFree agentMatthew BoydSP$14.5 millionFree agentNico Hoerner2B$11.6 millionExtensionPhil MatonRP$7.2 millionFree agentJustin SteeleSP$6.7 millionArbitration 3(Source: Spotrac)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The 2026 season brings renewed focus to the financial backbone of the Chicago Cubs, where contract values quietly&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":590369,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[2399],"tags":[72,5,138,24,4245,161,733,4],"class_list":{"0":"post-590368","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-chicago-cubs","8":"tag-alex-bregman","9":"tag-baseball","10":"tag-chicago","11":"tag-chicago-cubs","12":"tag-chicagocubs","13":"tag-cubs","14":"tag-dansby-swanson","15":"tag-mlb"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@mlb\/116126326999422424","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/590368","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=590368"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/590368\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/590369"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=590368"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=590368"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=590368"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}