from Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times,

First, comparing salaries of top athletes in every sport isn’t all that helpful. Just because the top 5% of elite players in one league make more than those in another doesn’t mean the same is true for the remaining 95%.

That’s also why comparing average salaries isn’t always best — those again being skewed by extreme highs or lows. Looking at Statista.com, the average salaries in the 2017-18 season had the NBA at $7.7 million, MLB at $4.51 million, the NFL at $2.91 million and NHL at $2.78 million, which, mind you, isn’t all that big a difference for three of the four leagues.

But when using what’s widely considered the most impartial measurement for comparing leagues — the “median” or “middle” salaries — MLB drops to No. 4 and NHL leapfrogs to No. 3. If we calculate the median “cap hit” versions of 2019 salaries across various leagues on Spotrac.com, we’ll see the NBA at $4.46 million, followed by NFL at $3 million, NHL at $2.25 million and MLB at $1.375 million.

The reason MLB fell so much is 40 of its players — about 5% of 860 total roster spots — earned $20 million or more and dramatically inflated average wages beyond what’s normal for most in that circuit.

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