August 2026 DMB Salary Update Analysis

2026-08-16 export vs. 2026-08-31 export · Classic Standard player pool · hitters, pitchers, RC/600, and biggest movers

Short version: another reshuffle, not inflation. Across all 5,644 distinct player cards, every card matched between the last full-pool dump and the August 31 salary downloads; no players were added or removed in this update. The all-player pool moved -$13.94M on a $22.90B pool. Hitters got $108.30M cheaper, pitchers got $98.28M more expensive, and the money again moved inside the pool rather than into it.
Matching note: Same-name different players are split: Delino DeShields, George Foster, Jose Bautista, John Farrell, Jack Wilson, Roberto Hernandez, and Adam Eaton. True two-way cards (Babe Ruth and the rest) still count once when the hitter and pitcher views share the same name, salary, and positions. April’s name-only match is not used.
5,644distinct player cards matched
-$13.94Mall-player salary-pool move
2,092players got more expensive
3,260players got cheaper
-$0.07Mmedian player move

What Changed

Position Slices: Hitters

Pos Players Net Avg Median Up Down Flat
C 462 -$3.66M -$0.01M -$0.04M 176 263 23
1B 352 -$22.92M -$0.07M -$0.15M 107 219 26
2B 398 -$25.18M -$0.06M -$0.10M 116 255 27
3B 350 -$7.85M -$0.02M -$0.08M 116 203 31
SS 374 +$7.09M +$0.02M -$0.03M 149 195 30
LF 368 -$8.45M -$0.02M -$0.17M 112 231 25
CF 382 -$42.44M -$0.11M -$0.18M 117 241 24
RF 370 -$13.23M -$0.04M -$0.15M 109 231 30
DH 34 +$3.79M +$0.11M -$0.05M 16 18 0
SP 31 +$5.80M +$0.19M -$0.02M 14 17 0
RP 5 -$1.24M -$0.25M -$0.27M 0 5 0

RC/600 Slices

Read Net as where the dollars moved and Median as what happened to the typical player in that band. Unrated is cards that still export 0 AB / 0 RC/600 (Tetelo Vargas, Tony Kemp, Joey Wendle, and the rest of the no-stats-yet group). Those are not low-RC bats.

RC/600 Players Net Avg Median Up Down Flat
<60 1,002 -$70.61M -$0.07M -$0.05M 249 589 164
60-75 1,167 -$109.52M -$0.09M -$0.18M 350 798 19
75-90 691 +$59.70M +$0.09M -$0.08M 320 370 1
90-105 172 +$38.67M +$0.22M +$0.12M 93 79 0
105-120 41 -$3.69M -$0.09M -$0.32M 16 25 0
120+ 14 -$9.30M -$0.66M -$0.69M 4 10 0
Unrated 39 -$13.55M -$0.35M $0.00M 0 7 32

Pitching Role Slices

Role Players Net Avg Median Up Down Flat
SP 1,579 +$63.61M +$0.04M -$0.05M 665 878 36
RP 782 +$31.45M +$0.04M -$0.02M 323 419 40
CL 206 +$3.22M +$0.02M -$0.10M 92 113 1

Same-Name Audit

These seven families were the April failure mode. They are split on identity, not collapsed by last name.

Family Card View Pos Old New Move Pct
DeShields, Delino DeShields, Delino L hitter 2B $4.75M $4.09M -$0.66M -14.0%
DeShields, Delino DeShields, Delino R hitter CF, LF $1.72M $1.43M -$0.29M -16.8%
Foster, George Foster, George R hitter LF, CF $10.22M $10.77M +$0.55M +5.4%
Foster, George Foster, George R pitcher SP $2.57M $2.18M -$0.40M -15.4%
Bautista, Jose Bautista, Jose R hitter RF, 3B $10.34M $11.85M +$1.51M +14.6%
Bautista, Jose Bautista, Jose R pitcher RP $1.70M $1.41M -$0.29M -16.9%
Farrell, John Farrell, John R hitter 2B $4.41M $4.83M +$0.42M +9.5%
Farrell, John Farrell, John R pitcher SP $1.52M $1.49M -$0.03M -1.8%
Wilson, Jack Wilson, Jack R hitter SS $3.19M $2.87M -$0.32M -10.1%
Wilson, Jack Wilson, Jack R pitcher RP, SP $1.17M $1.70M +$0.53M +45.1%
Hernandez, Roberto Hernandez, Roberto R pitcher CL $5.24M $5.94M +$0.70M +13.4%
Hernandez, Roberto Hernandez, Roberto R pitcher SP $1.73M $1.71M -$0.02M -1.2%
Eaton, Adam Eaton, Adam L hitter RF, CF $5.15M $5.15M +$0.01M +0.1%
Eaton, Adam Eaton, Adam R pitcher SP $1.09M $0.96M -$0.13M -12.3%

Biggest Hitter Movers

Largest Increases

Player Pos RC/600 Old New Move Pct
Mays, Willie R CF 116.9 $21.84M $24.12M +$2.28M +10.4%
DiMaggio, Joe R CF 112.4 $21.09M $23.27M +$2.18M +10.3%
Ott, Mel L RF, 3B, CF 124.0 $17.44M $19.56M +$2.12M +12.2%
Delahanty, Ed R LF, 1B 111.3 $17.55M $19.67M +$2.12M +12.1%
Leonard, Buck L 1B 116.6 $16.54M $18.64M +$2.10M +12.7%
Lloyd, Pop L SS 99.2 $17.44M $19.53M +$2.09M +12.0%
Greenberg, Hank R 1B, LF 111.9 $15.83M $17.90M +$2.07M +13.0%
Allen, Dick R 3B, 1B, LF 116.9 $15.46M $17.52M +$2.07M +13.4%
Doby, Larry L CF, RF 97.4 $14.80M $16.84M +$2.04M +13.8%
Walker, Larry L RF, 1B 102.6 $14.61M $16.64M +$2.03M +13.9%
Morgan, Joe L 2B 109.5 $17.06M $19.08M +$2.02M +11.8%
Stearnes, Turkey L LF, CF 95.9 $14.30M $16.32M +$2.02M +14.1%
Connor, Roger L 1B, CF 99.6 $13.88M $15.89M +$2.01M +14.5%
Ashburn, Richie L CF 86.0 $13.24M $15.23M +$1.99M +15.0%
Heilmann, Harry R RF, 1B 109.9 $12.89M $14.87M +$1.98M +15.4%

Largest Drops

Player Pos RC/600 Old New Move Pct
Vargas, Tetelo R CF, SS, RF 0.0 $19.30M $12.49M -$6.81M -35.3%
Mantle, Mickey S CF 146.2 $28.80M $26.38M -$2.42M -8.4%
Snider, Duke L CF 102.0 $18.92M $16.51M -$2.42M -12.8%
Griffey, Ken Jr L CF 104.7 $19.72M $17.49M -$2.24M -11.3%
Musial, Stan L RF, 1B, LF, CF 121.0 $22.11M $19.92M -$2.19M -9.9%
Gibson, Josh R C 125.8 $22.08M $19.89M -$2.18M -9.9%
Kemp, Tony L 2B, LF 0.0 $6.67M $4.51M -$2.16M -32.3%
Wendle, Joey L 2B, 3B, SS 0.0 $9.10M $7.09M -$2.01M -22.1%
Piazza, Mike R C 106.6 $15.38M $13.40M -$1.98M -12.9%
Ruth, Babe L RF, SP, LF 174.1 $35.77M $33.80M -$1.98M -5.5%
Bagwell, Jeff R 1B 119.5 $17.47M $15.51M -$1.96M -11.2%
Charleston, Oscar L CF 112.6 $23.00M $21.05M -$1.95M -8.5%
Berkman, Lance S 1B, LF, CF, RF 106.6 $14.84M $12.93M -$1.91M -12.9%
Mize, Johnny L 1B 112.9 $16.99M $15.12M -$1.88M -11.0%
Wells, Willie R SS 84.8 $14.52M $12.65M -$1.87M -12.9%

High-RC Watch List

Not automatic buys. Defense, durability, platoon shape, and park still matter. These are the repriced bats worth checking first.

90+ RC/600 Bats That Got Cheaper

Player Pos RC/600 Old New Move Pct
Mantle, Mickey S CF 146.2 $28.80M $26.38M -$2.42M -8.4%
Snider, Duke L CF 102.0 $18.92M $16.51M -$2.42M -12.8%
Griffey, Ken Jr L CF 104.7 $19.72M $17.49M -$2.24M -11.3%
Musial, Stan L RF, 1B, LF, CF 121.0 $22.11M $19.92M -$2.19M -9.9%
Gibson, Josh R C 125.8 $22.08M $19.89M -$2.18M -9.9%
Piazza, Mike R C 106.6 $15.38M $13.40M -$1.98M -12.9%
Ruth, Babe L RF, SP, LF 174.1 $35.77M $33.80M -$1.98M -5.5%
Bagwell, Jeff R 1B 119.5 $17.47M $15.51M -$1.96M -11.2%
Charleston, Oscar L CF 112.6 $23.00M $21.05M -$1.95M -8.5%
Berkman, Lance S 1B, LF, CF, RF 106.6 $14.84M $12.93M -$1.91M -12.9%
Mize, Johnny L 1B 112.9 $16.99M $15.12M -$1.88M -11.0%
Brett, George L 3B, 1B 102.7 $18.74M $16.88M -$1.87M -10.0%

Cheapest 100+ RC/600 Bats After The Update

Player Pos RC/600 Old New Move Pct
Blomberg, Ron L DH, 1B, RF 102.6 $8.85M $10.58M +$1.73M +19.6%
Tenace, Gene R C, 1B 105.8 $12.41M $11.38M -$1.03M -8.3%
Ortiz, David L DH, 1B 102.7 $11.59M $11.67M +$0.08M +0.7%
Clark, Jack R RF, 1B 109.3 $13.56M $12.37M -$1.18M -8.7%
Kiner, Ralph R LF, 1B 103.4 $13.60M $12.42M -$1.19M -8.7%
Giles, Brian L LF, CF, RF 100.1 $11.85M $12.47M +$0.63M +5.3%
Wright, David R 3B 101.8 $13.16M $12.70M -$0.46M -3.5%
Suttles, Mule R 1B, LF 100.1 $12.34M $12.74M +$0.41M +3.3%
Berkman, Lance S 1B, LF, CF, RF 106.6 $14.84M $12.93M -$1.91M -12.9%
Delgado, Carlos L 1B 106.6 $13.13M $12.99M -$0.14M -1.1%
Wilson, Hack R CF, LF, RF 102.6 $12.92M $13.04M +$0.11M +0.9%
Cruz, Nelson R RF, LF 102.4 $11.20M $13.04M +$1.84M +16.4%

90+ RC/600 Bats That Got More Expensive

Player Pos RC/600 Old New Move Pct
Mays, Willie R CF 116.9 $21.84M $24.12M +$2.28M +10.4%
DiMaggio, Joe R CF 112.4 $21.09M $23.27M +$2.18M +10.3%
Ott, Mel L RF, 3B, CF 124.0 $17.44M $19.56M +$2.12M +12.2%
Delahanty, Ed R LF, 1B 111.3 $17.55M $19.67M +$2.12M +12.1%
Leonard, Buck L 1B 116.6 $16.54M $18.64M +$2.10M +12.7%
Lloyd, Pop L SS 99.2 $17.44M $19.53M +$2.09M +12.0%
Greenberg, Hank R 1B, LF 111.9 $15.83M $17.90M +$2.07M +13.0%
Allen, Dick R 3B, 1B, LF 116.9 $15.46M $17.52M +$2.07M +13.4%
Doby, Larry L CF, RF 97.4 $14.80M $16.84M +$2.04M +13.8%
Walker, Larry L RF, 1B 102.6 $14.61M $16.64M +$2.03M +13.9%
Morgan, Joe L 2B 109.5 $17.06M $19.08M +$2.02M +11.8%
Stearnes, Turkey L LF, CF 95.9 $14.30M $16.32M +$2.02M +14.1%

Biggest Pitcher Movers

Largest Increases

Player Pos ERC ERA Old New Move Pct
Wood, Wilbur L RP, SP 3.13 3.34 $12.84M $14.80M +$1.96M +15.3%
Schilling, Curt R SP 3.02 3.43 $11.81M $13.74M +$1.94M +16.4%
Gibson, Bob R SP 3.32 3.51 $9.96M $11.86M +$1.90M +19.0%
Vance, Dazzy R SP 3.40 3.50 $9.96M $11.85M +$1.89M +19.0%
Shantz, Bobby L RP, SP 3.12 3.35 $10.00M $11.88M +$1.89M +18.9%
Joss, Addie R SP 3.13 3.42 $9.78M $11.66M +$1.88M +19.2%
Rogan, Bullet Joe R SP, LF, RF 3.27 3.64 $12.82M $14.69M +$1.88M +14.7%
Marichal, Juan R SP 3.21 3.47 $11.34M $13.19M +$1.85M +16.3%
Pierce, Billy L SP 3.43 3.58 $9.89M $11.73M +$1.84M +18.6%
Haren, Dan R SP 3.26 3.59 $8.38M $10.21M +$1.84M +21.9%
Donaldson, John L SP, LF, RF 3.22 3.41 $11.02M $12.85M +$1.83M +16.6%
Redding, Dick R SP 3.62 3.79 $7.49M $9.31M +$1.81M +24.2%
Plank, Eddie L SP 3.72 3.83 $7.82M $9.63M +$1.81M +23.2%
Lester, Jon L SP 3.47 3.59 $10.46M $12.26M +$1.80M +17.2%
Hough, Charlie R SP 3.57 3.82 $7.20M $9.00M +$1.80M +25.0%

Largest Drops

Player Pos ERC ERA Old New Move Pct
Ruth, Babe L RF, SP, LF 4.05 4.18 $35.77M $33.80M -$1.98M -5.5%
Johnson, Walter R SP 2.80 3.19 $18.66M $16.76M -$1.90M -10.2%
Kluber, Corey R SP 3.17 3.32 $12.14M $10.56M -$1.58M -13.0%
Wells, David L SP 3.23 3.50 $11.24M $9.77M -$1.47M -13.0%
Brown, Kevin R SP 2.95 3.22 $13.00M $11.59M -$1.41M -10.9%
Newcombe, Don R SP 3.47 3.69 $10.67M $9.27M -$1.40M -13.1%
Perry, Gaylord R SP 3.26 3.49 $12.51M $11.15M -$1.36M -10.9%
Haddix, Harvey L SP 3.51 3.70 $10.16M $8.82M -$1.33M -13.1%
Enatsu, Yutaka L SP 3.40 3.58 $10.02M $8.71M -$1.32M -13.1%
Williams, Smokey Joe R SP 3.19 3.46 $12.02M $10.71M -$1.31M -10.9%
Mendez, Jose R SP, SS 3.37 3.63 $9.90M $8.60M -$1.30M -13.1%
Koufax, Sandy L SP 2.99 3.25 $16.15M $14.86M -$1.29M -8.0%
Johnson, Randy L SP 2.65 2.91 $20.65M $19.36M -$1.29M -6.2%
Marberry, Firpo R CL, SP 3.44 3.65 $9.59M $8.33M -$1.26M -13.2%
Rowe, Schoolboy R SP 3.42 3.63 $9.39M $8.15M -$1.24M -13.2%

How To Use This

Same edge as April: do not buy every drop. Find where the market re-centered. First pass: discounted 90+ RC/600 bats, re-check outfield prices, and do not assume old starter pricing still holds. Selected starter raises: Wood, Wilbur L, Schilling, Curt R, Gibson, Bob R, Vance, Dazzy R, Shantz, Bobby L, Joss, Addie R, Rogan, Bullet Joe R, Marichal, Juan R, Pierce, Billy L. Selected hitter raises: Mays, Willie R, DiMaggio, Joe R, Ott, Mel L, Delahanty, Ed R, Leonard, Buck L, Lloyd, Pop L, Greenberg, Hank R, Allen, Dick R. Selected hitter cuts: Vargas, Tetelo R, Mantle, Mickey S, Snider, Duke L, Griffey, Ken Jr L, Musial, Stan L, Gibson, Josh R, Kemp, Tony L, Wendle, Joey L. Selected pitcher cuts: Ruth, Babe L, Johnson, Walter R, Kluber, Corey R, Wells, David L, Brown, Kevin R, Newcombe, Don R, Perry, Gaylord R, Haddix, Harvey L.

Method Notes

This compares the 2026-08-16 full-pool SearchResults dump with the 2026-08-31 salary dump. True two-way player cards are collapsed when their hitter and pitcher views share the same name, salary, and positions. Same-name different players are separated. All 5,644 distinct player cards matched across snapshots, so there were no additions or removals in this update. Hitter export: 3,126 rows. Pitcher export: 2,567 rows.

The hitter and pitcher sections are shown separately because DMB exports those views separately, and that is where the internal repricing is easiest to see. The all-player net is not hitter-net plus pitcher-net, because two-way cards appear in both ledgers but only once in the distinct-card ledger.

Source files: SearchResults - 2026-08-16T111947.104.csv, SearchResults - 2026-08-16T111958.400.csv, SearchResults - 2026-08-31T133038.848.csv, SearchResults - 2026-08-31T133006.248.csv.

Prior update: April 2026 salary analysis.

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