MLB Salaries by Division

[Dead Simmons]

_____AL EAST______________________NL EAST EAST_______

 

Yankees__$203,813 (2nd) _____Phillies__ $180,052 (3rd)

 

Red Sox__$162,817 (4rd) _____ Nats____ $134,704 (9th)

 

Blue Jays_ $132,628 (10th)_____Braves_ $110,897 (14th)

 

Orioles___ $107,406 (15th)_____ Mets___ $89,051 (22nd)

 

Tampa____$77,062 (28th)______ Rays___ $77,062 (28th)

 

 

_____AL Central____________________ CENTRAL_____

 

Tigers____$77,062 (5th)______ Reds____ $112,390 (12th)

 

Royals___ $92,034 (19th) _____ Cards___ $111,020 (13th)

 

Chicago__ $91,159 (20th)______ Brewers_ $103,844 (16th)

 

Twins____ $85,776 (26th)______ Cubs___ $89,007 (23rd)

 

Indians__ $82,534 (26th)_______Pirates__ $78,111 (27th)

 

 

_____AL West_______________________NL WEST___

 

Angels__ $155,692 (6th) _______Dodgers_ $235,295 (1st)

 

Rangers_ $136,036 (8th) ______ Giants___ $154,185 (7th)

 

Mariners_ $92,081 (18th) ______D'Backs__ $112,688 (11th)

 

Oakland_ $83,401 (23rd)______ Rockies__ $95,832 (17th)

 

Astros___$44,544 (28th)______ Padres___ $90,094 (21st)

 

Lots of inconsistencies here!

[sveumrules]

So division winners spent the 4th (BAL), 1st (DET), 1st (LAA), 2nd (WAS), 2nd (STL) and 1st (LAD) most to win their respective divisions.

 

Including the wildcards the postseason teams ranked 1st, 5th, 6th, 7th, 9th, 13th, 15th, 19th, 23rd and 27th in overall payroll.

 

The Brewers spent 8 million less in payroll than the Cardinals, is that 8 million what separates them as franchises or is it their ability to identify & develop talent?

[Bombers]

So division winners spent the 4th (BAL), 1st (DET), 1st (LAA), 2nd (WAS), 2nd (STL) and 1st (LAD) most to win their respective divisions.

 

Including the wildcards the postseason teams ranked 1st, 5th, 6th, 7th, 9th, 13th, 15th, 19th, 23rd and 27th in overall payroll.

 

The Brewers spent 8 million less in payroll than the Cardinals, is that 8 million what separayes them as franchises or is it their ability to identify & develop talent?

And as I have always said. Spending has a direct correlation to making the playoffs. And I know how people quickly point to the diversity in WS winners. But that is turning a blind eye to the root problem. I just cannot understand how anyone can be a fan of this system. Clearly the teams who spend a lot love it.

[dlk9s]

Spending doesn't necessarily equal playoffs, but NOT spending usually means that a team won't have an extended window at having the chance to make the playoffs. Things can certainly come together for a low payroll team in a given year, but that success isn't going to last long.

[Patrick425]

The ability to spend a lot doesn't guarantee a playoff birth, but it doesn't hurt. To me, the 3 biggest differences between the "haves" and "have nots" in baseball are:

 

A) When a "have" signs a player to a LT big money contract and that player flops or is injured through much of the contract, it doesn't have as big as impact because...

B) A "have" team can go out and pick up players (to fill in for injuries or players who are not playing well) whenever it wants without much concern for that player's current contract.

C) There are certain FAs every year that only the big time "haves" really have any shot at. Guys like Grienke, Fielder, etc. This is the one that possibly bother's me the most and leads to teams like the Brewers spending what money they have on the Suppans and Wolfs of the FA market.

 

BTW - the Astros are the 30th ranked team and the Marlins are not in that original post (Tampa is in twice in the NL and AL East). I'm guessing the Marlins rank 28th or 29th.

[TooLiveBrew]

The Brewers spent 8 million less in payroll than the Cardinals, is that 8 million what separates them as franchises or is it their ability to identify & develop talent?

$8MM doesn't buy you much in MLB today. I kind of assume you're hinting at this, but it seems painfully obvious that the Cards are significantly better at identifying & developing talent -- especially pitching -- than the Brewers.

[reillymcshane]

Note: 'Tampa' and 'Rays' are listed each in the NL East and AL East. Marlins are missing.

[torts]

simple solution

 

1.) spend lots of money to sign LaRoche and Pablo Sandoval

2.) win lots of games

3.) ????????

4.) win the world series

[Thurston Fluff]

The Brewers spent 8 million less in payroll than the Cardinals, is that 8 million what separates them as franchises or is it their ability to identify & develop talent?

$8MM doesn't buy you much in MLB today. I kind of assume you're hinting at this, but it seems painfully obvious that the Cards are significantly better at identifying & developing talent -- especially pitching -- than the Brewers.

 

I think it depends on how you look at it. It isn't enough to go out and get that one guy you might want but if you want to outbid someone for a couple guys adding an extra $4 million on each offer sure helps. But your point is well taken. The reason they are so steady at the top is not the spending at the major league level. I would love to see some sort of break down on how each team spends on player development compared to major league spending. That might be more telling than just major league payrolls.

[monty57]

I have to hand it to the Orioles. For many years, they thought they could win by simply going out and spending money and it never worked. They finally decided to take a different route, traded away some vets for prospects and built from within. Like most overhauls, it's taken a while, but they're now a good team with a modest payroll.

[Thurston Fluff]

Problem is if they don't pay for those prospects in a few years they will be back to the start of the next rebuild.

[reillymcshane]

Problem is if they don't pay for those prospects in a few years they will be back to the start of the next rebuild.

Unless you can keep a steady flow of young (and cheap and talented) players going to the big league club. You don't need to extend every player or fill holes with an expensive free agent. You fill from within, trade surplus assets, keep an eye on the bargain bins. And you can't be afraid to turn proven players into prospects.

 

Of course, easier said than done, but that's the ticket.

[Thurston Fluff]

Problem is if they don't pay for those prospects in a few years they will be back to the start of the next rebuild.

Unless you can keep a steady flow of young (and cheap and talented) players going to the big league club. You don't need to extend every player or fill holes with an expensive free agent. You fill from within, trade surplus assets, keep an eye on the bargain bins. And you can't be afraid to turn proven players into prospects.

 

Of course, easier said than done, but that's the ticket.

 

Very true. But at the same time it becomes harder to do when you don't get the high draft picks every year. It's doable but not a given. Especially if teams who have higher revenue also spend more on scouting and player development.

[torts]

I am also into signing Andy LaRoche, for moral support of his brother Adam, if that'd be appealing to Adam to come to Milwaukee. He can play 3B and act as a backup for Pablo as needed!

 

someone call Doug up, he needs to hire me asap to help him build a contender!

[reillymcshane]

Problem is if they don't pay for those prospects in a few years they will be back to the start of the next rebuild.

Unless you can keep a steady flow of young (and cheap and talented) players going to the big league club. You don't need to extend every player or fill holes with an expensive free agent. You fill from within, trade surplus assets, keep an eye on the bargain bins. And you can't be afraid to turn proven players into prospects.

 

Of course, easier said than done, but that's the ticket.

 

Very true. But at the same time it becomes harder to do when you don't get the high draft picks every year. It's doable but not a given. Especially if teams who have higher revenue also spend more on scouting and player development.

Correct. As I said, easier said than done. St. Louis has managed to do it for a while. Tampa as well. No matter how hard you try, you're not going to win every year. You might even be awful every now and then. But hopefully you rebound quicker and are more nimble when needed. Ideally, it leads to longer, sustained stretches of success.

[monty57]

It's always interesting to see what teams like the Orioles do once they've "got there." It's easy to fall into the trap where you feel you have to do everything to win "today" at the expense of tomorrow. In any circumstance, it's tough to build a franchise that wins more than it loses and makes the playoffs on a semi-regular basis. Big markets can get away with more mistakes than smaller markets, and small markets have to be willing to trade away "name" players for prospects or their payroll will get too "top heavy" quick and they'll fade into mediocrity.

 

The Orioles and Cubs (who are a few years behind the O's) aren't small market, so they could probably hold on to their stars if they decide to change strategy once they've "made it." The Pirates are small market and appear to want to emulate the Rays, so it'll be fun to see what moves they make as their stars start getting expensive.

[logan82]

Orioles and Cubs could go in a run like the Yankees where they had a few stars come up at once then were WS contenders year after year for a long time.

[Dead Simmons]

Note: 'Tampa' and 'Rays' are listed each in the NL East and AL East. Marlins are missing.

Sorry for the gaffe. You'll notice that I made no significant comment to offer on the list. That's because I was mentally exhausted after the 2 hours it took me too compile it. Spacing is tricky. Halfway through I wanted to quit. If someone knows of a more efficient way to do lists, making columns match up, etc...I'm all ears.

 

The little comment I did make concerning "inconsistencies" was the Yanks (2nd). Red Sox (4th) not being close to the playoffs, and the Pirates (27th) making it.

[reillymcshane]

Note: 'Tampa' and 'Rays' are listed each in the NL East and AL East. Marlins are missing.

Sorry for the gaffe. You'll notice that I made no significant comment to offer on the list. That's because I was mentally exhausted after the 2 hours it took me too compile it. Spacing is tricky. Halfway through I wanted to quit. If someone knows of a more efficient way to do lists, making columns match up, etc...I'm all ears.

 

The little comment I did make concerning "inconsistencies" was the Yanks (2nd). Red Sox (4th) not being close to the playoffs, and the Pirates (27th) making it.

All good. I appreciate you putting in the time. Just thought I'd mention it.

[sveumrules]

In 2010 the Rangers went to the World Series and lost with the 27th largest payroll in MLB. In 2011 the Rangers went to the World Series and lost with the 13th largest payroll in MLB. In 2012 the Rangers lost in the wild card game with 6th largest payroll in MLB. The last two years the Rangers have missed the playoffs with the 8th & 11th largest payrolls in MLB.

 

Being able to spend money is good, but knowing how to spend it is better. If you don't have all that much money and you aren't really sure of the best way to spend what little you have...Hi Doug! Good Luck!

[owbc]

It's interesting that big free agent contracts are not leading to postseason success.

 

The top 17 highest paid players in baseball have all been eliminated from the playoffs. That's amazing.