March 29--In 1966, when Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale held out from spring training rather than accept what they considered an unfair contract offer from the Dodgers, the minimum salary for a major league baseball player was $6,000.
On March 5, 1966 -- with Koufax and Drysdale in the second week of their holdout -- Marvin Miller became executive director of the Major League Baseball Players Assn. In 1968, Miller led the union in negotiating the sport's first collective bargaining agreement.
The minimum salary immediately was raised to $10,000. After the 1975 season, the players won the right to free agency. A look at how the minimum salary and average salary has risen over the years:
Year -- Minimum salary; Average salary
1967 -- $6,000; $19,000
1970 -- $12,000; $29,303
1975 -- $16,000; $44,676
1980 -- $30,000; $143,756
1985 -- $60,000; $371,157
1990 -- $100,000; $597,537
1995 -- $109,000; $1,110,766
2000 -- $200,000; $1,895,630
2005 -- $316,000; $2,476,589
2010 -- $400,000; $3,014,572
2015 -- $507,500; $3,952,252
***These numbers are not adjusted for inflation.
Source: Major League Baseball Players Assn.
