Two big stories this year in measuring MLB payroll versus victories:
The low-budget Cleveland Baseball Team, aka the
Guardians, had a stellar year, winning their division and getting to the second
round of the playoffs for an ultra-cheap $892,000 cost per win during the
regular season.
Still, after the
Guardians were gone, the post-season has been dominated by some of the biggest
payrolls: The Phillies may be a wild card team, but they had the fourth biggest
payroll in baseball, at $255 million, outspent only by the Mets, Dodgers and Damn
Yankees.
The Phillies spent an astonishing, MLB-leading
$2.92 million per regular-season victory. The Yankees weren’t far behind,
shelling out $2.67 million per victory, just ahead of the Padres at $2.65
million.
In fact, of the four finalists for the pennants, the
lowest-budget team was the Astros, the only one with a payroll of under $200
million. They spent $1.82 million per victory.
This is the fifth year that I have measured
payrolls/victories, using the Spotrac website for payroll, which includes
players being paid but not playing.
This year’s leader was the Baltimore Orioles, with a rock-bottom
payroll of $64.8 million and 83 victories for a cost of $780,000 per
victory. They were in contention for
much of the year, despite being in the same division as the Yankees, Rays and
Bluejays – all of which made the playoffs.
Contrast the Orioles with the Red Sox, also in the AL
East. They had almost four times the payroll -- $223.2 million. They finished
with 78 victories for a cost of $2.86 million per win.
High-Performing Rays
For the four previous years I’ve measured, the Rays have generally dominated my stats. They have spent a paltry $657,000 to $760,000 per victory – while getting to the playoffs all but once. Ironically, Tampa Bay upped its payroll a bit this year, to $104 million. They spent $1.2 million per victory this year – huge by Rays’ standards – but lost to the lower-budget Guardians in the first round of the playoffs.
At the opposite end of the spectrum are teams that have stunning payrolls – and don’t get anywhere near the playoffs. The Red Sox and
Angels are perennial leaders in that category. This year the Angels spent $2.64
million per victory. Other disasters were the Nats and White Sox, each spending
$2.57 million per win without a playoff bid.
Then there were the Mets, with the highest payroll at
$283 million. They got a whiff of playoff time for $2.8 million per win. The
Dodgers had the second-highest payroll $275.6 million, but their MLB-leading
111 wins meant they spent “only” $2.48 million per win. Still, they got knocked
out early by the Padres.
And those Damn Yankees. For years, they have
been near the top of big spenders, both in terms of payroll and cost per win.
Still, they haven’t won a World Series since 2009. This year, they had the
third biggest payroll -- $264 million – and once again fell short.
As for the Marlins, they upped their payroll by
signing two high-priced (by Fish standards) outfielders, Avisail Garcia and
Jorge Soler at $12 million each – and got little from them, even before they
were injured. The Marlins’ $1.39 million per win was just about the same as the
playoff-bound Mariners at $1.43.
Below are the stats for the regular season. After the
World Series, I’m thinking of doing another computation, including post-season
wins. Should those wins be valued more? I’m debating.
WINS MILLIONS
PER VICTORY
MILLIONS
|
Baltimore |
83 |
64.8 |
0.7807229 |
1 |
|
Cleveland |
92 |
82.1 |
0.8923913 |
2 |
|
Oakland
As |
60 |
61 |
1.0166667 |
3 |
|
TB
Rays |
86 |
104.3 |
1.2127907 |
4 |
|
Pittsburgh
Pirates |
62 |
85.1 |
1.3725806 |
5 |
|
Marlins |
69 |
96.3 |
1.3956522 |
6 |
|
Seattle
Mariners |
90 |
128.7 |
1.43 |
7 |
|
Ariz
Diamondbacks |
74 |
106.3 |
1.4364865 |
8 |
|
KC
Royals |
65 |
105.3 |
1.62 |
9 |
|
Milwaukee
Brewers |
86 |
142.7 |
1.6593023 |
10 |
|
Houston
Astros |
106 |
192.9 |
1.8198113 |
11 |
|
St.
Louis Cards |
93 |
170.1 |
1.8290323 |
12 |
|
Atlanta
Braves |
101 |
200.1 |
1.9811881 |
13 |
|
Minn |
78 |
159 |
2.0384615 |
14 |
|
Toronto
Blue Jays |
92 |
188.9 |
2.0532609 |
15 |
|
Cincy
Reds |
62 |
127.4 |
2.0548387 |
16 |
|
SF
Giants |
81 |
168.2 |
2.0765432 |
17 |
|
Chi
Cubs |
74 |
166.1 |
2.2445946 |
18 |
|
Detroit
Tigers |
66 |
150 |
2.2727273 |
19 |
|
Colorado
Rockies |
68 |
158.9 |
2.3367647 |
20 |
|
Texas
Rangers |
68 |
161.3 |
2.3720588 |
21 |
|
LA
Dodgers |
111 |
275.6 |
2.4828829 |
22 |
|
Chi
White Sox |
81 |
208.3 |
2.5716049 |
23 |
|
Washington
Nats |
55 |
141.5 |
2.5727273 |
24 |
|
LA
Angels |
73 |
192.9 |
2.6424658 |
25 |
|
San
Diego Padres |
89 |
236.7 |
2.6595506 |
26 |
|
NY
Yankees |
99 |
264.9 |
2.6757576 |
27 |
|
NY
Mets |
101 |
282.7 |
2.7990099 |
28 |
|
Boston
Red Sox |
78 |
223.2 |
2.8615385 |
29 |
|
Phila
Phillies |
87 |
255.1 |
2.9321839 |
30 |
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