Injuries cost Major League Baseball teams millions of dollars, wins, their place in the standings and – for one team – a wild-card play-off spot. Putting resources and intent into reversing the trend of the last few years could improve player health, team performance and the front office's bottom line.
Major League Baseball teams lost an average of 961 man-games due to injuries in 2016. That is the equivalent of nearly 6 players on the payroll but off the field for an entire season. The average player salary in the MLB is just over $4 million. Therefore, teams lost an average of $26 million last year in salaries alone paying injured players who could not play.