MLB All-Star Game bonuses: What winning players will earn
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Major League Baseball’s top players have a cash incentive to give their best effort at this year’s All-Star Game at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C.
The 64 players named to the annual star showcase compete for a bonus pool worth $640,000. But there’s a catch – only players on the winning team are eligible to receive a share.
That means each of the 32 players on the winning team will receive a $20,000 check. Players on the losing team will receive nothing.
MLB first instituted the bonus system when the league’s new collective-bargaining agreement took effect before the 2017 season. From 2003 to 2016, the league had used the result of the All-Star Game to determine home-field advantage in that season’s World Series.
The league does offer some benefits to all All-Star Game participants, regardless of the game’s outcome. Each All-Star receives six tickets to the game to give to friends and family, first-class airfare for himself and two guests, hotel accommodations, meal allowances, a $1,000 cash stipend and an unspecified “gift” from the American or National League.
Additionally, some players have clauses built into their contracts that grant bonuses if they earn an All-Star selection.
The 2018 MLB All-Star Game will air live at 8 p.m. ET on Fox.