contract types
Posted: Thu Jan 01, 2026 4:48 pm EST
CONTRACT TYPES
This league features many different contract types, which can be a lot to get your head around. In this document I will attempt to spell out the basic principles of each, in an attempt to help new owners get acclimated to the format.
MINORS
This is a contract given to a player when they are taken in the annual league-wide draft. The salary is determined by what round they were selected in, and it is treated as an automatically-renewing one-year contract. A player on this contract can be promoted (given a ROOKIE contract and moved to a majors roster spot) at any time, but they are required to be promoted or released upon completion of the season in which they exceed rookie thresholds (130 AB or 50 IP). During the offseason (but prior to the draft) they can be released for no buyout penalty, but after that they are treated as a one-year contract for buyout purposes. Salaries on these contracts do not change until a player is promoted.
MIN_Y
This is a contract given to a minors-eligible player (anyone under the 130AB/50IP threshold, with no experience in NPB or KBO) who is signed in free agency. These contracts can be from one to five years in length, and are subject to the same promotion rules as a MINORS contract, however they are subject to the same buyout rules as all non-MINORS contracts (50% of the total remaining money). Salaries on these contracts do not change until a player is promoted, and cannot be front- or back-loaded at the time of signing. A player who qualifies for this contract type in free agency can ONLY be given this contract - minors-eligible players cannot be signed to major league contracts, but they can be signed to a minors contract and immediately promoted.
R_/3
This is the ROOKIE contract that all promoted players are given. This contract is effectively a three-year contract - the 1, 2, or 3 after the R indicates which year of the contract is current (R1/3 is the first year, R2/3 is the second, etc). A player on a MINORS or MIN_Y contract cannot be placed in an MLB roster spot until their promotion is posted on the board. When a player is promoted, their salary in R1/3 will be 500k, unless their salary in the minors is higher, in which case the R1 salary will be the same as their minors salary. In each subsequent year of the ROOKIE contract, the player's salary will increase by 500k. In order to buyout a player on this contract, the penalty is 50% of all remaining money (so an R1/3 would be a three year contact, R2/3 would be two years, and R3/3 would be a one year).
ARB1, 2 or 3
When a player completes their R3/3 season, they become eligible for ARBITRATION (see the league constitution for details of the arbitration process/formula). These are effectively one-year contracts with team options for the following year (until ARB3, when the player is subject to the same rules as all other expiring contract types), and they will generally become more expensive each year, assuming the player qualifies for a raise. They are treated as one-year contracts for buyout purposes, and can be released at no charge at the end of the season.
_YEAR
These are the contracts given to MLB players (anyone over the 130/50 thresholds or with experience in KBO/NPB) in Free Agency. They have a minimum average annual value (AAV) of 500k, and can be front- or back-loaded at the time of signing (a spreadsheet of all current contract loads can be found here: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/ ... sp=sharing). The number displayed in front of "YEAR" is the number of years remaining on the contract, and the penalty to buy out these contracts is 50% of all total remaining money owed.
EXT_Y
This is a contract EXTENSION. Each team is allowed to extend one player on an expiring contract each offseason, however there is no limit to the number of these contracts that a team can acquire via trade. They are otherwise subject to the same rules as the "_YEAR" contract type. Only players on 1YEAR or ARB3 contracts are eligible for extension upon completion of that season, however a player already on an EXT contract may not be extended again when it expires.
* (asterisk)
A _YEAR or EXT_Y contract marked with an asterisk means that contract has been front- or back-loaded, which is relevant for buyouts and also for future budgeting.
1Yx
This contract is used to mark players signed after the trade deadline in-season; these players cannot be kept beyond the season in which they were signed by any means.
This league features many different contract types, which can be a lot to get your head around. In this document I will attempt to spell out the basic principles of each, in an attempt to help new owners get acclimated to the format.
MINORS
This is a contract given to a player when they are taken in the annual league-wide draft. The salary is determined by what round they were selected in, and it is treated as an automatically-renewing one-year contract. A player on this contract can be promoted (given a ROOKIE contract and moved to a majors roster spot) at any time, but they are required to be promoted or released upon completion of the season in which they exceed rookie thresholds (130 AB or 50 IP). During the offseason (but prior to the draft) they can be released for no buyout penalty, but after that they are treated as a one-year contract for buyout purposes. Salaries on these contracts do not change until a player is promoted.
MIN_Y
This is a contract given to a minors-eligible player (anyone under the 130AB/50IP threshold, with no experience in NPB or KBO) who is signed in free agency. These contracts can be from one to five years in length, and are subject to the same promotion rules as a MINORS contract, however they are subject to the same buyout rules as all non-MINORS contracts (50% of the total remaining money). Salaries on these contracts do not change until a player is promoted, and cannot be front- or back-loaded at the time of signing. A player who qualifies for this contract type in free agency can ONLY be given this contract - minors-eligible players cannot be signed to major league contracts, but they can be signed to a minors contract and immediately promoted.
R_/3
This is the ROOKIE contract that all promoted players are given. This contract is effectively a three-year contract - the 1, 2, or 3 after the R indicates which year of the contract is current (R1/3 is the first year, R2/3 is the second, etc). A player on a MINORS or MIN_Y contract cannot be placed in an MLB roster spot until their promotion is posted on the board. When a player is promoted, their salary in R1/3 will be 500k, unless their salary in the minors is higher, in which case the R1 salary will be the same as their minors salary. In each subsequent year of the ROOKIE contract, the player's salary will increase by 500k. In order to buyout a player on this contract, the penalty is 50% of all remaining money (so an R1/3 would be a three year contact, R2/3 would be two years, and R3/3 would be a one year).
ARB1, 2 or 3
When a player completes their R3/3 season, they become eligible for ARBITRATION (see the league constitution for details of the arbitration process/formula). These are effectively one-year contracts with team options for the following year (until ARB3, when the player is subject to the same rules as all other expiring contract types), and they will generally become more expensive each year, assuming the player qualifies for a raise. They are treated as one-year contracts for buyout purposes, and can be released at no charge at the end of the season.
_YEAR
These are the contracts given to MLB players (anyone over the 130/50 thresholds or with experience in KBO/NPB) in Free Agency. They have a minimum average annual value (AAV) of 500k, and can be front- or back-loaded at the time of signing (a spreadsheet of all current contract loads can be found here: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/ ... sp=sharing). The number displayed in front of "YEAR" is the number of years remaining on the contract, and the penalty to buy out these contracts is 50% of all total remaining money owed.
EXT_Y
This is a contract EXTENSION. Each team is allowed to extend one player on an expiring contract each offseason, however there is no limit to the number of these contracts that a team can acquire via trade. They are otherwise subject to the same rules as the "_YEAR" contract type. Only players on 1YEAR or ARB3 contracts are eligible for extension upon completion of that season, however a player already on an EXT contract may not be extended again when it expires.
* (asterisk)
A _YEAR or EXT_Y contract marked with an asterisk means that contract has been front- or back-loaded, which is relevant for buyouts and also for future budgeting.
1Yx
This contract is used to mark players signed after the trade deadline in-season; these players cannot be kept beyond the season in which they were signed by any means.