The New York Mets, who landed in fourth place, finally broke the record luxury tax of over $374.7 million.
The New York Mets must pay a record luxury tax of nearly $101 million after a fourth-place finish in their division, among an unprecedented eight teams that owe the penalty for the 2023 season.
Owner Steve Cohen’s Mets finished with a tax payroll of $374.7 million, according to figures finalized by Major League Baseball on Thursday and obtained by The Associated Press. That topped the previous high of $291.1 million by the 2015 Los Angeles Dodgers.
The Mets’ tax bill came to $100,781,932 after they finished fourth in the NL East at 75-87 in the most expensive flop in baseball history. That more than doubled the prior high of $43.6 million by the 2015 Dodgers.
The Mets saved about $18 million for this year with their summer selloff that saw them trade Max Scherzer, Justin Verlander, David Robertson and Mark Canha. Their projected tax payroll on June 30 was $384 million, according to MLB, and that additional $9.3 million in payroll would have resulted in a tax $8.4 million higher.
The final amount owed by the Mets would have been slightly more, but they benefited from a tax credit of $2,126,471 under a provision in the latest collective bargaining agreement for a payroll overcharge involving three players they traded. New York’s two-year tax total is $131.6 million.
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