When the arrival of Aroldis Chapman to the Boston Red Sox in exchange for 10.75 million dollars for one year of servicethe Cuban pitcher was taking another step in the ranks of those who have earned the most for their contracts with equipment from Major Leagues (MLB, for its acronym in English).
At the end of the 2025 campaign, history proved the management of the Massachusetts franchise right, to the point of offering the Holguin native an extension of the pact for another year, in which he will earn $12 million in salary plus incentives worth another million.
With the signing of the new agreement, the player from Holguín is on his way to continue climbing positions in the ranking of the players who have made the most profit from their talent, by closing the last year occupying the position 45 on the list.
A report from the website Full Swing He realizes that in October 2026 he would be displacing a group of players on that list who are no longer active, among them the legendary Japanese Ichiro Suzuki. There is even the possibility of joining the first 40 of the historical ranking.
Champan, 37 years old and with 16 seasons in the most demanding professional baseball in the world, has so far earned an amount of 176.5 million dollars wearing the shirt of seven franchises, according to the site data Spotrac.comspecialized in tracking athletes’ salaries and contracts.
According to statistics, his years as a star closer for the New York Yankees were the most profitable for Chapman, as he earned $99.5 million from that team.
When he signed with the Cincinnati Reds he secured 38.2 million, and the rest of his fortune came from the Chicago Clubs, Pittsburgh Pirates, Texas Rangers, Boston Red Sox and Kansas City Royals.
When he receives what was agreed with the Red Sox for the 2026 season, he would be exceeding 189 million, still far from the profits collected by Alex Rodríguez, who heads the historical order with a figure greater than 455 million.
Undisputed Cuban reference
Everything indicates that Chapman will maintain for several years his privilege as the Cuban who has obtained the most economic benefit during his time in the Major Leagues.
Among those born on the island, the one who came closest to his footsteps was the Cienfuegos first baseman José Dariel Abreu, who built a fortune of 174.5 million dollars thanks to his multi-year contracts with the Chicago White Sox and the Houston Astros.
Cuban José Dariel Abreu reaches an agreement with the Houston Astros in the MLB
Pito Abreu is the other Cuban who appears on the list of the 100 players who have earned the most in the history of the MLB – which closes above 140 million -, largely thanks to the pact he negotiated in 2013 with the South Chicago franchise, which transferred him 68 million for six years of service.
We would have to wait for news on how the trajectory of other current leaders on the island who remain in play evolve, such as the case of Jorge Soler, Yordan Álvarez, Lourdes Gurriel Jr. or Randy Arozarena, some of whom exceed one hundred million or have a good chance of achieving it.
Changes in sight
Although Chapman manages to be included among the 40 players with the best historical compensation in the Major League, that position may not be the definitive one in a list that is headed to suffer strong variations.
Chapman continues to climb among the best closers in the MLB
Players like the Japanese phenomenon Shohei Othani or the Dominican Juan Soto, who for now remain outside the top 25, will dominate the rankings in the future, taking into account the amounts that, according to the structure of their mega contracts (with the Dodgers and Mets), they will be paid on a deferred basis, that is, when they have already said goodbye to the diamonds.
So far, only thirty players have earned more than $200 million, and eight of them are still active.
The person closest to that barrier, and who will overcome it shortly, is the member of the Dodgers, Freddie Freeman (198.7 million/31st place). Six steps further back are Manny Machado (189.5), of the San Diego Padres, and Mets pitcher Jacob deGrom (182.7/39).
