
Walker Buehler
San Diego PadresP
Age: 32
Bats/Throws: R/R
6'2" / 185
DOB: 7/28/1994
(32 years, 2 months, 12 days)
P
Contract History
1 yr, $1.5M (2026)
MiLB contract selected 2026-03-25.
| Season | Base Salary | Prorated Signing Bonus | AAV | Potential Buyout | Earned Incentives | Pre-Arb Bonus | Total Earned | Total CBT Hit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | $1,500,000 | $0 | $1,500,000 | $0 | $2,500,000 | $0 | $4,000,000 | $4,000,000 |
| 2027 | FREE AGENT | |||||||
| Season | Base Salary | Prorated Signing Bonus | AAV | Potential Buyout | Earned Incentives | Pre-Arb Bonus | Total Earned | Total CBT Hit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | $1,500,000 | $0 | $1,500,000 | $0 | $2,500,000 | $0 | $4,000,000 | $4,000,000 |
| 2027 | FREE AGENT | |||||||
AVAILABLE INCENTIVES
| Season | Incentives |
|---|---|
| 2026 | $500,000 if 30 days on active roster, $500,000 if 60 days on active roster, $500,000 if 90 days on active roster, $500,000 if 120 days on active roster, $500,000 if 150 days on active roster |
Bold = EarnedStrikethrough = Not EarnedPlain = PendingItalics = Buyout Escalator
Player OptionClub OptionVesting OptionMutual OptionFree AgentEstimated Value
1 yr, $69.462k (2025)
League minimum, prorated.
| Season | Base Salary | Prorated Signing Bonus | AAV | Potential Buyout | Earned Incentives | Pre-Arb Bonus | Total Earned | Total CBT Hit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $69,462 | $0 | $69,462 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $69,462 | $69,462 |
| 2026 | FREE AGENT | |||||||
| Season | Base Salary | Prorated Signing Bonus | AAV | Potential Buyout | Earned Incentives | Pre-Arb Bonus | Total Earned | Total CBT Hit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $69,462 | $0 | $69,462 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $69,462 | $69,462 |
| 2026 | FREE AGENT | |||||||
Player OptionClub OptionVesting OptionMutual OptionFree AgentEstimated Value
1 yr, $21.05M (2025)
| Season | Base Salary | Prorated Signing Bonus | AAV | Potential Buyout | Earned Incentives | Pre-Arb Bonus | Total Earned | Total CBT Hit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $15,000,000 | $3,050,000 | $21,050,000 | $0 | $1,000,000 | $0 | $19,050,000 | $22,050,000 |
| 2026 | $25,000,000 | $0 | $21,050,000 | $3,000,000 | $0 | $0 | $25,000,000 | $21,050,000 |
| Total | $15,000,000 | $3,050,000 | $21,050,000 | $3,000,000 | $1,000,000 | $0 | $19,050,000 | $22,050,000 |
| Season | Base Salary | Prorated Signing Bonus | AAV | Potential Buyout | Earned Incentives | Pre-Arb Bonus | Total Earned | Total CBT Hit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $15,000,000 | $3,050,000 | $21,050,000 | $0 | $1,000,000 | $0 | $19,050,000 | $22,050,000 |
| 2026 | $25,000,000 | $0 | $21,050,000 | $3,000,000 | $0 | $0 | $25,000,000 | $21,050,000 |
| Total | $15,000,000 | $3,050,000 | $21,050,000 | $3,000,000 | $1,000,000 | $0 | $19,050,000 | $22,050,000 |
AVAILABLE INCENTIVES
| Season | Incentives |
|---|---|
| 2025 | $500,000 if 20 starts, $500,000 if 22 starts, |
Bold = EarnedStrikethrough = Not EarnedPlain = PendingItalics = Buyout Escalator
Player OptionClub OptionVesting OptionMutual OptionFree AgentEstimated Value
1 yr, $8.025M (2024)
| Season | Base Salary | Prorated Signing Bonus | AAV | Potential Buyout | Earned Incentives | Pre-Arb Bonus | Total Earned | Total CBT Hit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $8,025,000 | $0 | $8,025,000 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $8,025,000 | $8,025,000 |
| 2025 | FREE AGENT | |||||||
| Season | Base Salary | Prorated Signing Bonus | AAV | Potential Buyout | Earned Incentives | Pre-Arb Bonus | Total Earned | Total CBT Hit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $8,025,000 | $0 | $8,025,000 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $8,025,000 | $8,025,000 |
| 2025 | FREE AGENT | |||||||
Player OptionClub OptionVesting OptionMutual OptionFree AgentEstimated Value
1 yr, $8.025M (2023)
| Season | Base Salary | Prorated Signing Bonus | AAV | Potential Buyout | Earned Incentives | Pre-Arb Bonus | Total Earned | Total CBT Hit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | $8,025,000 | $0 | $8,025,000 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $8,025,000 | $8,025,000 |
| 2024 | ARB 3 | |||||||
| 2025 | FREE AGENT | |||||||
| Season | Base Salary | Prorated Signing Bonus | AAV | Potential Buyout | Earned Incentives | Pre-Arb Bonus | Total Earned | Total CBT Hit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | $8,025,000 | $0 | $8,025,000 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $8,025,000 | $8,025,000 |
| 2024 | ARB 3 | |||||||
| 2025 | FREE AGENT | |||||||
Player OptionClub OptionVesting OptionMutual OptionFree AgentEstimated Value
2 yr, $8M (2021-22)
| Season | Base Salary | Prorated Signing Bonus | AAV | Potential Buyout | Earned Incentives | Pre-Arb Bonus | Total Earned | Total CBT Hit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | $2,750,000 | $1,000,000 | $4,000,000 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $3,750,000 | $4,000,000 |
| 2022 | $3,250,000 | $1,000,000 | $4,000,000 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $4,250,000 | $4,000,000 |
| 2023 | ARB 3 | |||||||
| 2024 | ARB 4 | |||||||
| 2025 | FREE AGENT | |||||||
| Total | $6,000,000 | $2,000,000 | $8,000,000 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $8,000,000 | $8,000,000 |
| Season | Base Salary | Prorated Signing Bonus | AAV | Potential Buyout | Earned Incentives | Pre-Arb Bonus | Total Earned | Total CBT Hit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | $2,750,000 | $1,000,000 | $4,000,000 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $3,750,000 | $4,000,000 |
| 2022 | $3,250,000 | $1,000,000 | $4,000,000 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $4,250,000 | $4,000,000 |
| 2023 | ARB 3 | |||||||
| 2024 | ARB 4 | |||||||
| 2025 | FREE AGENT | |||||||
| Total | $6,000,000 | $2,000,000 | $8,000,000 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $8,000,000 | $8,000,000 |
Player OptionClub OptionVesting OptionMutual OptionFree AgentEstimated Value
1 yr, $603.5k (2020)
| Season | Base Salary | Prorated Signing Bonus | AAV | Potential Buyout | Earned Incentives | Pre-Arb Bonus | Total Earned | Total CBT Hit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $603,500 | $0 | $603,500 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $603,500 | $603,500 |
| 2021 | Pre-ARB | |||||||
| 2022 | ARB 1 | |||||||
| 2023 | ARB 2 | |||||||
| 2024 | ARB 3 | |||||||
| 2025 | FREE AGENT | |||||||
| Season | Base Salary | Prorated Signing Bonus | AAV | Potential Buyout | Earned Incentives | Pre-Arb Bonus | Total Earned | Total CBT Hit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $603,500 | $0 | $603,500 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $603,500 | $603,500 |
| 2021 | Pre-ARB | |||||||
| 2022 | ARB 1 | |||||||
| 2023 | ARB 2 | |||||||
| 2024 | ARB 3 | |||||||
| 2025 | FREE AGENT | |||||||
Player OptionClub OptionVesting OptionMutual OptionFree AgentEstimated Value
CONTRACT INFORMATION NOTES
- Total Earned is calculated as the sum of Base Salary, Prorated Signing Bonus, Pre-Arb Bonus, and Earned Incentives for each season.
- Total CBT Hit is calculated as the sum of AAV and Earned Incentives for each season. Earned pre-arbitration bonuses do not count against the CBT, as each team contributes 1/30th of the leaguewide bonus pool. Only that equal, prorated amount counts against the CBT, regardless of how much or little the team's players earn in pre-arb bonuses.
- Signing bonuses are always allocated pro rata across guaranteed years, regardless of when the signing bonus is actually paid out.
- Signing bonuses, even if a portion of the signing bonus is due after a player is traded, are always paid by the signing team.
- When a player is traded, the AAV is recalculated based as the remaining base salary owed to the player divided by the remaining years on the contract. Since signing bonuses are always paid by the original team, they're not included in the recalculation.
- When an option is exercised, the player doesn't receive the Potential Buyout, so that value is struckthrough and not included in the totals row. However, buyout is still included in the AAV of the original contract years in the above table, even if not paid. The team(s) the player played for receive a CBT credit to account for the difference, on the Other Payments (Luxury Tax) table of the main payroll page.

