Major League Baseball (MLB) is the most popular professional sports among four major professional sports, MLB, National Basketball Association (NBA), National Football League (NFL), and National Hockey League (NHL) in the U.S. Purpose: To investigate the relationship between MLB team payroll and the team record from 2009 to 2011. Methods: We used documentation analysis, descriptive statistics, and correlation analysis to understand the relationship between payrolls and team record. Results: New York Yankees had the highest average payroll, 203,157,202 U.S.D. as well as the best average wins (99) in 2009-2011. On the other hand, San Diego Padres had the lowest payroll with only 79 wins per season, which ranked 18 among 30 teams. Moreover, Pittsburgh Pirates had the second lowest payroll, 43,227,666 with only 64 wins which was the worst wins per season in the league. Pearson correlation revealed a significant positive correlation between team payroll and team record (p <.05); Conclusion: Findings of this study suggest better salary could motivate players to achieve higher winning percentage.
