Lane Thomas

Kansas City Royals, Center Field
Age: 30y-6m-13d (Aug 23, 1995)
Exp: 6.014 Years
Country: US
Drafted: Round 5 (#144 overall), 2014
Agent(s): Wasserman
2026 Payroll Salary

$5,250,000

2026 Cash

$5,250,000

Career Earnings

$26,054,044

2026-2026 Free Agent (CURRENT)

Lane Thomas signed a 1 year, $5,250,000 contract with the Kansas City Royals, including $5,250,000 guaranteed, and an average annual salary of $5,250,000. In 2026, Thomas will earn a base salary of $5,250,000, while carrying a total salary of $5,250,000.
Contract Terms:
1 yr(s) / $5,250,000
Average Salary:
$5,250,000
Signing Bonus:
N/A
Free Agent:
2027 / UFA
YOS @ Signing:
6.014
Year Age YOS PayrollAnnual Luxury Tax Tax % League Tax Cash Annual Cash Cumulative
2026 30 6.014 $5,250,000 $5,250,000 2.15% $5,250,000 $5,250,000
2027 31 -
UFA
Year Age Service Base Salary Incentives Likely Incentives Unlikely Payroll Salary Luxury Tax
2026 30 6.014 $5,250,000 - - $5,250,000 $5,250,000
2027 31 --
UFA
Year Age Base Salary Cash Total Cash Cumulative Cash Remaining AYC Cumulative AYC Remaining
2026 30 $5,250,000 $5,250,000 $5,250,000 $5,250,000 $5,250,000 $5,250,000
Contract Notes

  • Incentives: $1M

Source: MLB contract specifics generally collected from verified reports.

2025-2025 Arbitration

Contract Terms:
1 yr(s) / $7,825,000
Average Salary:
$7,825,000
Signing Bonus:
N/A
Free Agent:
2026 / UFA
YOS @ Signing:
5.014
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2024-2024 Arbitration

Contract Terms:
1 yr(s) / $5,450,000
Average Salary:
$5,450,000
Signing Bonus:
N/A
YOS @ Signing:
4.014
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2023-2023 Arbitration

Contract Terms:
1 yr(s) / $2,200,000
Average Salary:
$2,200,000
Signing Bonus:
N/A
YOS @ Signing:
3.014
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2022-2022 Pre-Arbitration

Contract Terms:
1 yr(s) / $723,600
Average Salary:
$723,600
Signing Bonus:
N/A
YOS @ Signing:
2.014
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2021-2021 Pre-Arbitration

Contract Terms:
1 yr(s) / $570,500
Average Salary:
$570,500
Signing Bonus:
N/A
YOS @ Signing:
1.068
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2020-2020 Pre-Arbitration

Contract Terms:
1 yr(s) / $568,800
Average Salary:
$568,800
Signing Bonus:
N/A
YOS @ Signing:
0.085
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2019-2019 Pre-Arbitration

Contract Terms:
1 yr(s) / $555,000
Average Salary:
$555,000
Signing Bonus:
N/A
YOS @ Signing:
0
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2014-2014 Signing Bonus

Contract Terms:
1 yr(s) / $750,000
Average Salary:
$750,000
Signing Bonus:
N/A
YOS @ Signing:
0
Spotrac Premium Tools
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Seasons

6.014 Years

Career Earnings thru 2026

$18,204,044

Earnings w/ Different Teams

4 teams

Earnings Per Year

Year Age Team(s) Service Status Cash Total Cash Cumulative Awards
2014 18
-
Signing Bonus
$750,000
$750,000
2019 23
0
Injured
$555,000
$1,305,000
2020 24
0.085
Reserve / minor-buried
$172,920
$1,477,920
2021 25
1.068
Retained
Active
$368,040
$159,484
$1,845,960
$2,005,444
2022 26
2.014
Active
$723,600
$2,729,044
2023 27
3.014
Active / Arb Avoided
$2,200,000
$4,929,044
2024 28
4.014
Active / Arb Avoided
Retained
$1,816,662
$3,633,338
$6,745,706
$10,379,044
2025 29
5.014
Injured / Arb Avoided
$7,825,000
$18,204,044
Total      
$18,204,044
$18,204,044
2026 30
6.014
Active
$5,250,000
Total
$23,454,044

Earnings Per Team

Years Team Base Signing Incentives Cash Cumulative
1 - $750,000 - $750,000
3 $1,095,960 - - $1,095,960
4 $6,716,422 - - $6,716,422
2 $9,641,662 - - $9,641,662
Year Team(s) Age Base Signing Incentives Cash Total Cash Cumulative
2014
18
$750,000
$750,000
$750,000
2019
23
$555,000
$555,000
$1,305,000
2020
24
$172,920
$172,920
$1,477,920
2021
25
$368,040
$159,484
$368,040
$159,484
$1,845,960
$2,005,444
2022
26
$723,600
$723,600
$2,729,044
2023
27
$2,200,000
$2,200,000
$4,929,044
2024
28
$1,816,662
$3,633,338
$1,816,662
$3,633,338
$6,745,706
$10,379,044
2025
29
$7,825,000
$7,825,000
$18,204,044
Total
$17,454,044
$750,000
$18,204,044
$18,204,044
2026
30
$5,250,000
$5,250,000
Total
$22,704,044
$750,000
$23,454,044

Earnings Per Team

Years Team Base Signing Incentives Cash Cumulative
1 - $750,000 - $750,000
3 $1,095,960 - - $1,095,960
4 $6,716,422 - - $6,716,422
2 $9,641,662 - - $9,641,662

Injuries

Year Dates Reason
2025 CLE Jul 05, 2025 - Sep 28, 2025 Foot
2025 CLE May 27, 2025 - Jun 09, 2025 Foot
2025 CLE Apr 20, 2025 - May 22, 2025 Wrist
2024 WSH Apr 24, 2024 - May 27, 2024 Knee (MCL)
2020 STL Aug 09, 2020 - Aug 31, 2020 COVID-19
2019 STL Aug 28, 2019 - Sep 29, 2019 Wrist
  • Dec 11, 2025 Signed a 1 year $5.25 million contract with Kansas City (KC)
  • Jan 09, 2025 Signed a 1 year $7.825 million contract with Cleveland (CLE), avoiding arbitration
  • Jul 29, 2024 Traded to Cleveland (CLE) from Washington (WSH) for Alex Clemmey, José Tena and Rafael Ramirez Jr.
  • Jan 11, 2024 Signed a 1 year $5.45 million contract with Washington (WSH), avoiding arbitration
  • Jan 13, 2023 Signed a 1 year $2.2 million contract with Washington (WSH), avoiding arbitration
  • Mar 01, 2022 Signed a 1 year $723,600 contract with Washington (WSH)
  • Jul 30, 2021 Traded to Washington (WSH) from St. Louis (STL) for Jon Lester
  • Mar 05, 2020 Signed a 1 year $568,800 contract with St. Louis (STL)
  • Jul 02, 2017 Traded to St. Louis (STL) from Toronto (TOR) for International Bonus Pool Cap Space ($500,000)
  • Jun 10, 2014 Signed a contract with Toronto (TOR)
  • Jun 06, 2014 Drafted by Toronto (TOR): Round 5 (#144 overall)
Year Team GP GS PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI TB BB K SB AVG OBP SLG OPS WAR
2025 CLE 39 34 142 125 10 20 2 0 4 11 34 14 44 4 .160 .246 .272 .518 -0.63
2024 CLE 130 120 528 472 65 112 26 3 15 63 189 44 137 32 .237 .309 .400 .709 0.28
2023 WSH 157 154 682 628 101 168 36 3 28 86 294 36 176 20 .268 .315 .468 .783 3.30
2022 WSH 146 125 548 498 62 120 26 2 17 52 201 41 132 8 .241 .301 .404 .705 1.78
2021 WSH 77 52 264 226 35 53 15 2 7 28 93 37 63 6 .235 .341 .412 .753 1.01
2020 STL 18 10 40 36 5 4 2 0 1 2 9 4 13 0 .111 .200 .250 .450 -0.20
2019 STL 34 4 44 38 6 12 0 1 4 12 26 4 8 1 .316 .409 .684 1.093 0.49

Calculated Market Value

$2.5M Avg. Annual Salary

Market Value

  • 1 years, $2,477,518
  • Avg. Salary: $2,477,518
  • MLB Rank: 404
  • CF Rank: 22

Current Contract

  • Free Agent: 2027
  • Avg. Salary: $5,250,000
  • MLB Rank: 278
  • CF Rank: 12

Comparable Players

We've selected the following players based on their age, contract status, and statistical production to compare Lane Thomas to.

Player Length Value Avg. Salary Age When Signed
Cedric Mullins 1 $8,725,000 $8,725,000 30
Chas McCormick 1 $3,400,000 $3,400,000 29
Jarren Duran 1 $3,850,000 $3,850,000 28
Adam Jones 1 $3,000,000 $3,000,000 33
Averages 1 $4,743,750 $4,743,750 30.0

Base Calculated Value

After adjusting the above contracts as if signed at Thomas's current age (30), a linear regression is performed, providing us with the following initial value.

Length Value Avg. Salary
1 $3,365,278 $3,365,278

Statistical Comparisons

Now we'll compare our variables and Thomas statistically over the two seasons prior to their signing. In this case we're analyzing: GP%, H/Gm, RBI/Gm, K/Gm, AVG/Yr, OPS, WOBP, ISO, WAR

Player GP% H/Gm RBI/Gm K/Gm AVG/Yr OPS WOBP ISO WAR
Cedric Mullins
2023-2024
 80.86 0.76 0.49 0.76 0.23 0.72 0.32 0.18 3.62
Chas McCormick
2023-2024
 64.71 0.77 0.46 0.90 0.24 0.71 0.32 0.16 2.71
Jarren Duran
2023-2024
 80.62 1.10 0.44 0.95 0.29 0.83 0.37 0.20 6.39
Adam Jones
2017-2018
 90.43 1.14 0.46 0.70 0.28 0.76 0.34 0.16 1.66
Average 79.16 0.94 0.46 0.83 0.26 0.75 0.34 0.18 3.60
Lane Thomas
2024-2025
 55.23 0.78 0.44 1.07 0.20 0.61 0.27 0.14 -0.37
Pct Change -30.23 -17.02 -4.35 -28.92 -23.85 -18.27 -19.71 -22.22 -110.28
Median Prime % Change -22.22%
Average Prime % Change -30.54%

Calculated Market Value: Lane Thomas

After applying our Prime % figures into our base calculated value, we're given two values. The average of these values becomes our current calculated market value.

Terms Avg. Salary
1 years, $2,477,518 $2,477,518
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