The Diamondbacks are heading into a quieter spending year after pushing their payroll to a franchise high and still missing the postseason by two games.
Owner Ken Kendrick said Friday that the club’s payroll will come down in 2027. “It will not be at the same level. It’ll be a lower payroll than we had this year,” Kendrick told Burns and Gambo of Arizona Sports.
Arizona finished 2026 with an estimated $193MM cash payroll and a luxury tax figure around $236.29MM, according to MLBTR’s Payroll Tracker. That was up about $8MM from the previous franchise high in 2025 and left the team within $8MM of the first CBT threshold. The Diamondbacks have never paid the luxury tax.
The lower payroll doesn’t automatically point to a fire sale, though. Kendrick noted that a decent chunk of money is coming off the books because several impending free agents “made little or no contribution to the team” this year.
A few of the obvious names fit that description. Zac Gallen made $22.025MM, with more than $14MM deferred, and posted an ERA north of 6.00 in 22 appearances. Lourdes Gurriel Jr. earned $13MM, is due a $5MM buyout, and was released in September after a career-worst .544 OPS.
Michael Soroka is the biggest impending free agent on the roster. He made $7.5MM and clearly put himself in line for a raise.
Arizona also has a cluster of players leaving arbitration or one-year deals behind - Ryan Thompson, A.J. Puk, Jonathan Loáisiga, Taylor Clarke, James McCann, Ildemaro Vargas, Kevin Ginkel and Dennis Santana - who combined for roughly $17MM.
Some of that group, especially Loáisiga and Clarke, outperformed modest contracts, but they’re all set to come off the books.
The arbitration picture is a little more manageable. The Diamondbacks don’t have any first-time arbitration players, and Lars Nootbaar, Gabriel Moreno and Ryne Nelson are all due raises.
Matt Swartz projects those three to combine for about $15.8MM. Pavin Smith is projected at $2.5MM, though he’s likely to be non-tendered.
Arizona spent a little more than $19.5MM on its arbitration class this year, so that group could actually trim a few million off the ledger.
The core salary commitments are already heavy. Corbin Burnes, Eduardo Rodriguez, Corbin Carroll, Merrill Kelly, Nolan Arenado, Ketel Marte, Brandon Pfaadt, Geraldo Perdomo and Justin Martinez are set to account for $130MM next season. Because the Cardinals will send $9MM to Arizona at the end of the year to help offset Arenado’s salary, the club effectively has about $121MM in guaranteed money on the books.
Add in the arbitration class and the Diamondbacks would sit around $137MM before outside additions or minimum-salary players fill out the roster. With next year’s minimum still to be determined in the upcoming collective bargaining agreement, a figure around $1MM would put Arizona near a $150MM payroll before winter moves.
Even with the spending coming down, the roster still has work to do. The Diamondbacks will need bullpen help beyond Justin Martinez, Brandyn Garcia and Juan Morillo.
They’ll also need to replace or re-sign Soroka, and there is mutual interest in bringing him back. If that happens, they still should chase another starter with swing-and-miss stuff.
First base is another clear problem area after Arizona finished with MLB’s worst production there in 2026. Backup catcher and a utility infielder also loom as possible needs.
The front office probably won’t try to solve all of that in free agency. Marte could come up in trade discussions after he no-showed for another game in August. Arizona could also use its outfield surplus as leverage, with Carroll, Nootbaar, Jordan Lawlar and Ryan Waldschmidt all giving the club four outfielders who could provide above-average production if healthy.
In Other News...
Nolan Arenado Gave Arizona Hope At Third Base Again For Now
Nolan Arenados first season in Arizona gave the Diamondbacks a familiar kind of reassurance at third base, even if it came with some familiar caution signs attached. After arriving from the Cardinals, he provided an early boost, went quiet in June, then finished strong enough in September to remind the club why his bat still carries weight, even in a year that ended with a .255 average, 30 home runs and a 120 wRC+.
For Arizona, the bigger question is not what Arenado did in stretches, but how much of that version is sustainable going forward. The offensive production was real enough to help, yet the underlying trends pointed the other way, with his exit velocity and hard-hit rate slipping, leaving the Diamondbacks with a useful answer at the hot corner for now and a longer-term evaluation still hanging over the spot. [Read more 🡒]