Major League Baseball payrolls dropped 4% in 2021 compared to the league's last full season, and the $4.05 billion total was the lowest in a fully completed year since 2015. The Los Angeles Dodgers led baseball with a $262 million payroll in 2021, the second highest in major league history behind the franchise's $291 million mark in 2015. The Dodgers were hit with a $32.65 million luxury tax bill Monday as the sport resumed penalizing big spenders after a one-season suspension of the tax due to the pandemic.