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It's that wonderful time of year again where MLS salaries are released and we can all see just how much our players are making. As expected, there aren't any humongous-big salaries from our team like there are from the Red Bulls, Galaxy or Toronto FC. There are a few players making some decent coin, though. Here are some notes from the recently released salary information:
* Jose Mari is actually making more than Hendry Thomas made last year, but not by a whole lot. Thomas' base salary last year was $180,000, while Jose Mari's is $230,000. Based on guaranteed compensation, Jose Mari is making $60,000 more than Thomas did last year, all told. Considering that Thomas had reportedly been spending the entire off-season refusing to sign for the Rapids because they wouldn't sign him to a ridiculously big new contract, it's a bit disheartening to see Thomas still making $180,000 with less guaranteed compensation in Dallas this year.
* Clint Irwin got a big raise when he signed that new contract this off-season, going from $35,000 to $75,000 in the blink of an eye. And even then, that's probably going to end up being an underpayment. Just like his original signing, a good bit of business for the Rapids for a guy who many say will be the next great American goalkeeper.
* The highest paid player on the team is... not Gabriel Torres! Looking at the salaries reminds us that his Designated Player status did not come from a gigantic contract, but rather from the money they spent to sign him in the first place. Torres only makes $275,000, less than Edson Buddle's $375,000. Buddle, by the way, got a $100,000 raise from last season.
* Other players who have gotten big raises: Vicente Sanchez, Dillon Powers. Smaller raises have gone to Nathan Sturgis and Shane O'Neill.
* Brian Mullan appears to have pulled the same stunt as Jamie Smith did last year, going from well over $100,000 to only $48,500 for what will likely be his final season in burgundy.
* The base salary for high draft picks appears to be getting bigger as the years go along; Marlon Hairston is making an impressive $70,000 in base salary this season, while Grant van de Casteele is making $48,500.