Seoul: The South Korean baseball league has announced plans to introduce a salary floor in 2027 to ensure a more competitive balance and mandate that teams allocate a specific amount of money toward player wages. This decision, unveiled by the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO), follows a recent meeting of its board of directors, comprised of club presidents.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the salary floor has been established at 6.06 billion won (US$4.3 million), reflecting the average salary of the team with the lowest payroll over the past two years. The floor will be increased by 5 percent annually. Penalties for failing to meet the floor include paying 30 percent of the shortfall for a first violation, 50 percent for a second, and 100 percent for a third violation. The fines will be directed toward the KBO's youth development fund.
In tandem with the salary floor, the KBO will also raise the salary cap by 5 percent each year from 2026 to 2028. The current cap of 13.7 billion won will increase to 14.4 billion won in 2026, 15.1 billion won in 2027, and 15.9 billion won in 2028. Teams exceeding the cap will incur fines, with penalties for first-time violators reduced from 50 percent to 30 percent of the overage. The penalty structure for repeated violations has also been revised.
The league aims to motivate clubs to spend on players without financial deterrents. Additionally, teams can now designate one "franchise player," whose salary will partially be excluded from the cap, provided the player has spent at least seven seasons with the current team.
The KBO also announced that the 2026 regular season will commence on March 28, following the March 5-17 World Baseball Classic, with the All-Star Game scheduled for July 11.