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MLS Salary Information Day: What the Summer Acquisitions Make

The MLS Players Union updated their salary data Tuesday, showing what Minnesota United’s summer transfers make.

Angelo Darwin
Angelo Rodriguez and Darwin Quintero talk through a stoppage during Minnesota United’s 1-3 loss to the Los Angeles Galaxy. Rodriguez’s salary was revealed in Tuesday’s MLS Players Union salary announcement.
Tim C McLaughlin

The bi-annual release of Major League Soccer salary information came out via the MLS Players Union on Tuesday. While it doesn’t prove a be-all, end-all list of how a player impacts his team’s salary cap—a shadowy blend of allocation spending and fuzzy math with transfer fees ultimately dictates that—it does at least help with modeling out where the team is spending in relation to other areas. With the fall release in particular, it gives insight on new signings.

Minnesota United FC salaries as of September 15, 2018

Player Base Salary Total Salary Starting Base Starting Total
Player Base Salary Total Salary Starting Base Starting Total
Darwin Quintero 1650000 1650000 1650000 1650000
Angelo Rodriguez 575000.04 657187.54 0 0
Romario Ibarra 500000.04 546250.04 0 0
Francisco Calvo 450000 522600 450000 522600
Kevin Molino 425004 477504 425004 477504
Ethan Finlay 375000 375000 375000 375000
Alexi Gomez 300000 339450 300000 339450
Miguel Ibarra 300000 332322 300000 332322
Ibson 300000 317083.33 300000 317083.33
Maximiano 275000.04 314166.71 275000.04 314166.71
Michael Boxall 250008 267341.33 250008 267341.33
Collen Warner 251004 251004 251004 251004
Johan Venegas 225000 237500 225000 237500
Rasmus Schuller 200004 225004 200004 225004
Jerome Thiesson 180000 219166.67 180000 219166.67
Sam Cronin 141660 208761.33 315000 339750
Abu Danladi 135000 186000 135000 186000
Bobby Shuttleworth 165000 181875 165000 181875
Mason Toye 124999.92 177999.92 124999.92 177999.92
Fernando Bob 152496 152496 0 0
Marc Burch 140004 140004 140004 140004
Matt Lampson 100000.08 107500.08 100000.08 107500.08
Eric Miller 84997.97 105997.97 84997.97 105997.97
Collin Martin 95004 95004 95004 95004
Brent Kallman 82500 85791.67 82500 85791.67
Harrison Heath 69457.5 69457.5 69457.5 69457.5
Frantz Pangop 67500 67500 67500 67500
Bertrand Owundi Eko'o 67500 67500 67500 67500
Alex Kapp 55654.2 55654.2 55654.2 55654.2
Carter Manley 54500.04 54500.04 54500.04 54500.04
Wyatt Omsberg 54500.04 54500.04 54500.04 54500.04
Team Base 7846793.87
Team Total 8542121.37
Prior Base 7367637.79
Prior Total 7958426.46

As it was following the May release, Darwin Quintero remains Minnesota United’s highest paid player, ranking 19th in the league in base salary and 24th in total compensation. Two of Minnesota’s summer transfers fill out the top three, with Angelo Rodriguez making a base level of $575,000 and Romario Ibarra on a $500,000 base.

Rodriguez’s deal places him in the top 15% of MLS base salaries and at the top 14% of guaranteed salaries in the league. Curiously enough, his base is exactly the same as former Loon Christian Ramirez, with a modestly higher guaranteed number potentially boosted by considerations from his transfer or other expenses. The salary number comes in line with the common belief that Minnesota applied the Designated Player tag to the Colombian striker in order to amortize away the cost of his transfer, with the intent to buy him down with Targeted Allocation Money next season.

Romario Ibarra’s contract sets him as the highest paid winger on the team and one of three players in the top 20% of league pay, eclipsing Kevin Molino’s $425,004 base number. His listing as a TAM-eligible player suggests that his salary cap hit is limited—and, maybe most notably, his yet-unknown transfer fee was thus paid for with TAM funds. Fernando Bob’s salary (a guarantee/base of $152,496) is worth mentioning for how low of an annual value it represents given his profile in Brazil; the Players Union reports on an annual basis versus the cost of his deal prorated to the amount of games each player is available for. The other notable change over the course of the year is Sam Cronin, whose salary dropped from a guarantee of $339,750 to $141,660. It’s unclear why this would have occurred, though that level of a cut represents only having been paid for the equivalent of fourteen games of his original contract level.