So you’re a lefty and life is tough?
Stop your whining.
Look at the numbers . . . you’re in pretty good company . . . if you can survive adolescence.
This week we compare the salaries of left-handed pitchers with the average salary of all pitchers over the past 20 years.
I can be the first to admit the approach was less than totally scientific on this one. We did gather the pertinent data and we did comb the data (the data is losing hair just like you are – such a shame) . . .
But we didn’t do much else. It’s been a crazy week. Forgive me this once?
Here are the lefties we pulled:
| Name | Years in MLB | Highest Salary Earned | Year | Team during salary | Contract |
| Jim Abbott | 1989-1999 | $2,775,000 | 1994 | NY Yankees | |
| Steve Avery | 1990-2003 | $4,850,000 | 1997 | Boston Red Sox | |
| John Franco | 1984-2005 | $4,000,000 | 1993 | NY Mets | |
| Paul Gibson | 1988-1996 | $830,000 | 1993 | NY Mets | |
| Tom Glavine | 1989-present | $11,000,000 | 2003 | NY Mets | $42.5 million – 4 yr – NY Mets (2003) |
| Steve Howe | 1980-1996 | $2,500,000 | 1995 | NY Yankees | |
| Bruce Hurst | 1980-1994 | $3,000,000 | 1992 | San Diego Padres | |
| Randy Johnson | 1988-present | $16,000,000 | 2004 | AZ Diamondbacks | $ 53 million – 4 yr – AZ (1999) |
| Bob Kipper | 1985-1992 | $1,000,000 | 1992 | Minnesota Twins | |
| Al Leiter | 1987-2005 | $10,295,600 | 2004 | NY Mets | $32 million – 4 yr – NY Mets (1998) |
| Joe Magrane | 1987-1996 | $1,500,000 | 1994 | LA Angels | |
| Eric Milton | 1998-present | $10,333,333 | 2007 | Cincinatti Reds | $25 million – 3 yr – Cincinatti Reds (2004) |
| Andy Pettitte | 1995-present | $16,428,416 | 2006 | Houston Astros | $31.5 million – 3 yr – Houston Astros (2003) |
| Greg Swindell | 1986-2002 | $4,450,000 | 1995 | Houston Astros | |
| Fernando Valenzuela | 1980-1997 | $2,050,000 | 1988 | LA Dodgers | |
| Frank Viola | 1982-1996 | $4,833,333 | 1993 | Boston Red Sox | |
| David Wells | 1987-2007 | $9,250,000 | 2001 | Chicago White Sox | |
| Dontrelle Willis | 2003-present | $10,000,000 | 2009 | Detroit Tigers | $29 million – 3 yr – Detroit Tigers (2007) |
| Barry Zito | 2000-present | $18,500,000 | 2009 | San Francisco Giants | $126 million – 7 yr – San Francisco Giants (2007) |
Here’s where the bias was introduced, we took the best contract or best years for the lefties. Good data is more rare than good chocolate.
Check out the average Pitching Salaries:
| Year | # of pitchers | Avg. Annual Salary |
| **2000 | 126 starting pitchers | $3,064,021 |
| **2000 | 165 relief pitchers | $1,220,412 |
| ***2008 | 128 starting pitchers | $4,429,366 |
| ***2008 | 198 relief pitchers | $1,859,796 |
| 2009 | 407 pitchers | $2,887,334 |
You know I’m not a baseball nut, but Relief Pitchers . . . they play HOW MANY INNINGS?? If I can get the numbers I’ll break down what those fellas are earning per inning. Then you can compare your hourly rate to their inning rate and . . .
So here’s the point.
The average left-handed pitcher earns $7,031,352 annually and the average Starting Pitcher earns $4,429,366 which means the lefties get a mark-up of 59% over average starting pitchers.
So if you want to make more coin, start using your left hand!
Simple enough, 😉
Data Collected and Sorted by Whitney Ostrander.
Photo of Ned Flanders snagged from the Simpsons.
Keri, I couldn’t think of a way to work the Fed into this comment.
Martin O’Connor
That really cool!
Jose Escalante
And for those who are Lefties, they are in their right mind, n’est pas?
certainly a fun and engaging post.
Too late for me to change which hand I use now though.
However, it is a fun exercise sometime to write or draw with my non-dominate hand.
Stretches open the neuro-pathways.
Happy Dating and Relationships,
April Braswell
We have two lefties in our family. To bad they didn’t know then what you write now. It was so looked down on if you were left handed growing up – at least where I grew up. Teachers did almost everything thinkable to make lefties switch hands.
Too Funny Martin!
Vicki
Good one Martin.
Interesting! And a few that I know seems to have a superiority complex. I will too when I make $50,000,000.00 in four years.
Martin O’Connor
Yjod od ,r [tsvyovomh eoyj ,u ;rgy jsmf”
Oops, sorry, practising with my left hand!
Martin Wright
I wonder why that would be if there is a bonafide connection. And look at those large numbers with dollar signs – just about made me salivate! That is a lot of money for pitching….
MissMentor
Oh, to be an average left handed pitcher!
Keri Eagan
Awww, I should have played baseball! Instead my left handed capabilities are underutilized in IT.
Lefties should get paid more because they live less than righties, right? 😉