According to a report from Shi Davidi of Sportsnet , the Blue Jays are thought to have gotten their 2024 player payroll below the first competitive balance tax threshold of $237M. However, that will not be confirmed until later this offseason when the commissioner’s office calculates each team’s final payroll and formally announces which clubs will have to pay luxury tax penalties for the 2024 season. The Blue Jays came into the season with a luxury tax payroll approximately $11M above the first threshold, but they shaved some money off the books by trading several players ahead of the deadline.
It’s also worth keeping in mind that publicly available payroll estimates are exactly that — estimates. According to the estimates at RosterResource, 10 teams (including the Blue Jays) are in line to pay the luxury tax this January. The Mets, Dodgers, Yankees, Braves, Phillies, Astros, Giants and Rangers are certain to be penalized, while the Blue Jays and Cubs are close enough that they could potentially slip under the $237M threshold in the final calculations.
RosterResource has Toronto’s final 2024 luxury tax payroll at $240.4M and Chicago’s at $238.4M.
While neither the Blue Jays nor the Cubs would have to pay a particularly high penalty for their modest overages (if they do in fact go over), the Blue Jays, in particular, could benefit from resetting their penalties. They paid the luxury tax for the first time in franchise history last season. Luxury tax penalties incr.