Cleveland Guardians

AL Central
Revenue '25, $M
Estimated · Forbes · 19th of 30
Op. income '25, $M
Estimated · Forbes · 4th (tie) of 30
CBT payroll '25, $M
Reported · AP via Post Register

Revenue and results

Payroll and all other costs: $284MOperating income: $53MRevenue: $337M

2025 revenue split into operating income and everything else. Calculated from Forbes estimates.

FigureValueRank of 30League medianSource
Revenue, 2025, net of revenue sharing$337M19th$359MForbes, Mar 2026
Operating income, 2025$53M4th (tie)$23.5MForbes, Mar 2026
Local TV rights fee, 2023 "About $55 million" a year from Diamond Sports Group, before a 2024 one-year deal at a lower, undisclosed fee.$55M??Front Office Sports, Feb 2024

Figures are reported unless marked: * estimated. About labels Figures from different seasons and sources shouldn't be added together.

Operating income is Forbes' estimate of what's left after payroll and every other cost of running the club, for one regular season. It isn't the same as what the owner makes. It counts luxury tax payments as a cost and leaves out playoff revenue, franchise value growth and businesses owners run alongside the club. A negative figure isn't the same as an owner losing money. What it leaves out

League context

Revenue against operating income for all 30 clubs, 2025. The Guardians rank 19th in revenue and 4th (tie) in operating income. The two clubs with the most revenue, the Dodgers and Yankees, come in below zero on Forbes' measure after paying $169.4M and $61.8M in luxury tax.

$200M$300M$400M$500M$600M$700M$800M$900M−$300M−$200M−$100M$0+$100MRevenueOperating incomeDodgers: $850M revenue, −$20M operating incomeYankees: $710M revenue, −$53M operating incomeCubs: $599M revenue, $58M operating incomeRed Sox: $567M revenue, $78M operating incomeMets: $553M revenue, −$213M operating incomePhillies: $539M revenue, −$52M operating incomeBraves: $524M revenue, $27M operating incomeGiants: $477M revenue, $54M operating incomeAstros: $464M revenue, −$45M operating incomePadres: $452M revenue, −$1M operating incomeBlue Jays: $445M revenue, −$71M operating incomeRangers: $398M revenue, −$44M operating incomeMariners: $390M revenue, $24M operating incomeAngels: $377M revenue, −$14M operating incomeTigers: $363M revenue, $27M operating incomeOrioles: $355M revenue, $23M operating incomeBrewers: $354M revenue, $47M operating incomeCardinals: $350M revenue, $33M operating incomeReds: $336M revenue, $26M operating incomePirates: $330M revenue, $48M operating incomeRoyals: $330M revenue, $25M operating incomeD-backs: $324M revenue, −$31M operating incomeAthletics: $320M revenue, $45M operating incomeMarlins: $320M revenue, $53M operating incomeRockies: $319M revenue, $20M operating incomeTwins: $315M revenue, $11M operating incomeNationals: $300M revenue, −$15M operating incomeRays: $290M revenue, $31M operating incomeWhite Sox: $239M revenue, −$40M operating incomeGuardians: $337M revenue, $53M operating incomeGuardiansDodgersYankees
Source: Forbes, 2025 season estimates, net of revenue sharing. Estimated.
How cap and floor supporters read it: Lower-revenue clubs receive shared revenue and tax proceeds, and several post some of the league's best margins while keeping payroll low.
How the players' union reads it: Operating income leaves out franchise value growth and playoff revenue, and the top spenders choose to spend. A floor addresses low payrolls without capping pay.

Payroll

FigureValueSource
Payroll, 2025$104.2MAP via Register-Herald
Tax payroll, 2025$128.2MAP via Post Register
Highest tax payroll, 2025: Dodgers$417.3MAP via Post Register

Payroll is what the club paid its 40-man roster. Tax payroll is the luxury tax figure, which counts each contract's average annual value plus benefits. Both are defined in the glossary. All figures are reported. About labels

Where the Guardians fall against each side's proposed caps and floors

Big contracts, 2026

The Guardians carried 1 contract at $20M or more, 19th (tie) in MLB, 0 at $10M to $20M and 5 at $5M to $10M, measured by what each counts against the luxury tax this season. Every club

Player2026 tax chargeSigned through
José Ramírez$20.8M2032

All figures are estimates. About labels Source: FanGraphs RosterResource, as of Oct 2026. The tax charge is usually the contract's average annual value. Released and traded players aren't counted.

Farm system

LevelAffiliateLeagueHome
Triple-AColumbus ClippersInternational LeagueColumbus
Double-AAkron RubberDucksEastern LeagueAkron
High-ALake County CaptainsMidwest LeagueEastlake
Single-AHill City HowlersCarolina LeagueLynchburg
ComplexACL GuardiansArizona Complex LeagueGoodyear
DSLDSL CLE GorylDominican Summer LeagueDominican Republic
DSLDSL CLE MendozaDominican Summer LeagueDominican Republic

Source: MLB Stats API, Oct 2026. Complex teams play at the club's spring training site. Player development spending isn't public. Every club's affiliates

Baseball operations staff

Not yet counted. Staff counts come from an annual snapshot of each club's directory. How we classify roles

Spot something wrong? Send a correction with a source.

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