PHOENIXPHOENIX — The addition to the Padres lineup was a subtraction from their bottom line.
The Marlins are paying all but the league minimum portion of Luis Arráez’s contract as part of the deal between the teams that was consummated Friday and became official Saturday.
That means the Padres will pay Arráez $592,796, which is the prorated portion of the $740,000 MLB minimum. Arráez is still owed almost $8.5 million for the rest of this season, with the Marlins covering nearly $7.9 million of that amount.
The Padres still owed almost $1.4 million this year to reliever Woo-Suk Go, who was traded to the Marlins along with three minor leaguers. So the Padres trimmed approximately $800,000 from their payroll.
The swap also lowered the Padres’ Competitive Balance Tax commitment for 2024 by more than $1 million, as Go’s annual average value on the two-year, $4.5 million contract he signed in January was $2.25 million (minus the approximately $350,000 the Padres paid already this year).
FanGraphs.com lists the Padres’ payroll at approximately $166 million and their CBT payroll — which is based on the annual average value of contracts plus player benefits — at approximately $222.6 million.
The Padres are committed to staying below the first CBT threshold lest they have to pay a hefty tax for exceeding the limit a fourth consecutive year. Breaking that string allows them to reset, meaning ing the threshold in 2025 would incur a minimal penalty.
The lowest CBT threshold for 2024 is $237 million, which gives the Padres about $12 million to work with when considering additions before this summer’s trade deadline.
