- Major League Baseball players who have been impacted by Covid-19 could have lost a collective $79.3 million due to forfeited salaries and injury time.
- The Return to Play study, created by marketing agency Blueclaw, reveals the staggering financial impact of Covid-19 on major sport tournaments.
- At least 15 players have taken a salary hit due to injury time for Covid-19, while a further 15 have forfeited their wage by opting out of the current season.
- Mike Moustakas may have seen a loss of $258,064 for his four-day sick leave, while Ian Desmond has sacrificed his $9.4 million by sitting out the season.
Major League Baseball players who have been impacted by Covid-19 could have lost a collective $79.3 million this year so far through absences and injury time, new data shows.
The Return to Play study, created by marketing agency Blueclaw, reveals the potential financial and operational impact of the pandemic on major sport tournaments, including MLB, the National Basketball Association, and the National Football League.
The study found that MLB players may have taken a substantial hit of $79,370,548 due to player absences, as at least 30 players and 11 umpires have taken injury time off or opted out of the current season due to the pandemic.
Mike Moustakas, of the Cincinnati Reds, has seen the biggest penalty due to injury time out of the eight named and seven anonymous players who’ve contracted the virus, seeing a drop of $258,064 four his four-day absence – equating to 5.8% of his annual salary.
Although Moustakas’ loss is the biggest in monetary value, the Miami Marlins’ Jorge Alfaro is the player who’s seen the biggest drop compared to his annual income due to the virus, losing 15.9% of his salary – $35,189 – for an 11 day absence.
In fact, the actual sum lost by infected MLB players could have been higher, as the names of seven players are currently undisclosed. For example, if they’re all paid the average salary of $3,894,220, that’s a further loss of $27.3 million.
The biggest reason behind the financial impact of the pandemic is the 15 players who have opted out of the season, which is equivalent to $78.1 million in forfeited salaries.
However, it’s difficult to pinpoint exactly which players are still getting paid and how much. The MLB has dictated that high-risk players who opt out will receive their full salary, while players with high-risk family members may be subject to a reduced wage.
On top of this, 11 umpires have also opted out of the current season. If they too have forfeited their salary by doing so, they could have lost a collective $2.585 million.
And it’s not just Major League Baseball players who have seen their income impacted by the pandemic – the report shows that the National Basketball Association has also seen disruption due to athletes sitting out and players testing positive.
To see the full impact of Covid-19 on the MLB and NBA, please visit: https://www.blueclaw.co.uk/2020/08/20/how-coronavirus-has-affected-major-sporting-events/
To find out how Blueclaw can use data analysis to research and report on the current climate, please get in touch here: https://www.blueclaw.co.uk/contact/
