Six MLB Players Earn Bonuses For Being Named To The All-Star Team

It’s officially the MLB All-Star Week, with festivities already underway in Atlanta and the Home Run Derby tonight. There are 81 players who have been named All-Stars this season, including all the players participating in the game or replaced due to injury or unavailability.

Six of those 81 All-Stars will receive contract bonuses for making the roster, adding up to $425,000 in total. Such bonuses became a source of controversy when Philadelphia Phillies starter Cristopher Sánchez was passed over in favor of Milwaukee Brewers rookie Jacob Misiorowski, who has only made five starts in the Majors. Sánchez lost a contract incentive that would’ve paid him $50,000 for making the All-Star Game, but the Phillies will give him the bonus amount anyway.

Three players triggered $100,000 bonuses, including one who isn’t going to be on the field in Atlanta. Cleveland Guardians third baseman José Ramírez was voted in as the starter for the American League squad, but he opted out of the game. He’s batting .297/.367/.510 with 18 home runs and 29 stolen bases this year. This is his fifth-consecutive All-Star nod and seventh overall.

Texas Rangers pitcher Jacob deGrom is one of the oldest All-Stars, joining Aroldis Chapman of the Boston Red Sox and Clayton Kershaw of the Los Angeles Dodgers as the only 37-year-olds on the rosters. He’ll add a $100,000 bonus to his $40 million base salary this year for making his fifth All-Star Team. He has a 2.32 ERA and a 0.90 WHIP this year over 19 starts.

Freddy Peralta, ace of the Milwaukee Brewers, will also receive a $100,000 bonus for making his second All-Star appearance. He leads the National League with 10 wins and has a 2.74 ERA over 19 starts.

Two of deGrom’s former teammates with the New York Mets picked up $50,000 bonuses. Francisco Lindor was elected as the starting shortstop for the National League. This is his fifth All-Star appearance, but surprisingly his first since 2019. He was not chosen for the All-Star Team last season, even though he finished as the runner-up in the MVP race.

Lindor will be joined by Mets closer Edwin Díaz, who has a 1.66 ERA and 55 strikeouts in 38 innings. He’s in the third season of a five-year, $102 million deal—the first nine-figure contract ever signed by a relief pitcher—and he will gain another $50,000 for his third All-Star selection.

The player with the smallest All-Star bonus of the six who have them in their contracts is Seattle Mariners center fielder Julio Rodríguez, but it could lead to a significantly more lucrative payout. He will receive $25,000 being chosen as an All-Star reserve, but he has a unique player option in his contract that’s partially based on All-Star appearances.

Rodríguez signed a 12-year, $209.3 million contract that runs from 2023-2034, including a player option for 2030-2034 that’s worth $18 million per year. However, the value of those option years increases to $20 million per year if he accrues eight combined All-Star selections and Silver Slugger Awards from 2022-2029, and $22 million per year if he achieves 10 of them. This is his third All-Star Team inclusion so far, and he has already won two Silver Sluggers.