The "disparity in team payrolls is greater than ever" in MLB, according to Hal Bodley of USA TODAY. The Yankees and Orioles, who will have '98 revenues of about $150M each, had payrolls of "nearly" $74M last season (USA TODAY, 11/11). Of the 13 teams with payrolls over $48M, the Orioles had the only losing record. Of 17 teams under $48M, only the Cardinals and Blue Jays had winning records (N.Y. TIMES, 11/11). The following lists MLB payrolls, with actual payroll, termination costs for players currently not with team and total payroll costs (USA TODAY, 11/11).
| TEAM | ACTUAL | TERMINATION | TOTAL |
| ORIOLES | $71,860,921 | $2,135,000 | $73,995,921 |
| YANKEES | 65,613,698 | 8,200,000 | 73,813,698 |
| RANGERS | 60,219,595 | 1,935,773 | 62,155,368 |
| BRAVES | 61,606,000 | 134,254 | 61,740,254 |
| DODGERS | 62,806,667 | -2,075,000 | 60,731,667 |
| RED SOX | 59,347,000 | 0 | 59,347,000 |
| METS | 58,660,665 | 0 | 58,660,665 |
| INDIANS | 59,543,165 | -2,899,724 | 56,643,441 |
| ANGELS | 58,389,000 | -5,800,000 | 54,189,000 |
| PADRES | 52,996,166 | 0 | 52,996,166 |
| CUBS | 49,566,000 | 1,120,000 | 50,686,000 |
| ASTROS | 48,294,000 | 0 | 48,294,000 |
| GIANTS | 48,514,715 | -600,000 | 47,914,715 |
| ROCKIES | 47,714,648 | 170,000 | 47,884,648 |
| CARDINALS | 44,090,854 | 3,518,094 | 47,608,948 |
| MARINERS | 43,698,136 | 1,036,878 | 44,735,014 |
| WHITE SOX | 35,180,000 | 2,650,000 | 37,830,000 |
| BLUE JAYS | 33,908,500 | 3,360,000 | 37,268,500 |
| BREWERS | 31,897,903 | 4,956,133 | 36,854,036 |
| ROYALS | 35,610,000 | 0 | 35,610,000 |
| D'BACKS | 31,614,500 | 1,200,000 | 32,814,500 |
| PHILLIES | 28,622,500 | 1,300,000 | 29,922,500 |
| DEVIL RAYS | 27,370,000 | 250,000 | 27,620,000 |
| TIGERS | 19,237,500 | 4,081,480 | 23,318,980 |
| TWINS | 24,527,500 | -2,500,000 | 22,027,500 |
| REDS | 20,707,333 | 0 | 20,707,333 |
| MARLINS | 15,141,000 | 4,000,000 | 19,141,000 |
| A'S | 22,463,500 | -3,878,386 | 18,585,114 |
| PIRATES | 13,695,000 | 0 | 13,695,000 |
| EXPOS | 8,317,500 | 0 | 8,317,500 |
|
| TOTAL | $1,231,213,966 | $33,894,502 | $1,265,108,468 |
