How Willson Contreras trade, restructured deal will impact Red Sox’ 2026 payroll

In order to finalize their trade with the Cardinals for Willson Contreras, the Red Sox reworked the remainder of Contreras’ contract to both sweeten the deal for the player and impact how much he’ll count against the competitive balance tax (CBT) threshold.

When Contreras left the Cubs to sign with the rival Cardinals in December 2022, he inked a five-year, $87.5 million deal through 2027 that included a club option for 2028. He finished 2025 with $41.5 million left on the final two years of that in the form of an $18 million salary for 2026, an $18.5 million salary for 2027 and a $5 million buyout on a $17.5 million option for 2028.

To obtain Contreras, the Red Sox increased his guarantee — to $42.5 million over two years — by changing the 2027 salary from $18.5 million to $17 million, then adding $2.5 million to both the 2028 option (now $20 million) and buyout (now $7.5 million). In effect, Contreras was rewarded an extra $1 million for approving the trade, just as Sonny Gray did when he encountered a similar scenario in November.

The Red Sox then received $8 million in cash considerations from St. Louis as part of the deal, lowering Contreras’ cost to $34.5 million over the next two seasons (with the chance he costs $55.5 million over three years if the option is picked up after 2027). On an average annual value basis, the CBT hit, as confirmed by sources with knowledge of the deal, will be $17.25 million in both 2026 and 2027.

In terms of AAV, that makes Contreras the fifth-highest paid player on the club, behind Garrett Crochet, Trevor Story, Gray and Masataka Yoshida. Adding Contreras’ deal (and subtracting the projected major league minimum owed to Hunter Dobbins, who was sent to St. Louis in the deal) means the Red Sox are projected to be very close to the first CBT threshold of $244 million. As MassLive reported in late November, the industry belief is that the Red Sox are OK with going over that threshold but are reluctant to incur penalties that come with hitting the next threshold (at $264 million). Another major offensive addition — such as a reunion with Alex Bregman or another free agent signing — might require the Red Sox adding an AAV in the $30 million range. Shedding salary in another trade to make the numbers more palatable is possible unless the Red Sox want to blow past the next threshold. As of now, they’re close to their CBT total from 2025, which was calculated by the league at $248,859,139.

Contreras’ contract did not come with an assignment bonus that guaranteed a sum if he were traded. He had to negotiate the $1 million bump. His deal still includes a full no-trade clause for the remainder of the 2026 season and a 10-team no-trade list from 2027 on. There are also bonuses based on award finishes and All-Star appearances.

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