Now that the 40 man roster appears to be complete ESPN.com released their projection of the Mets projected lineup and payroll. It looks like we will be right around 90 Million dollars, down from 118 last year. It's been awhile since the Mets have been below 100 mil, many people will be pointing towards the Madoff scandal as the reason for this but realistically its more a result of the overall negative direction of the team. Here are some quick thoughts.
How does 90 million compare to other teams?
In 2011 a 90 Million dollar salary would have been 15th in MLB, right in the middle. Just below the Rangers (92 million) and just above the Braves (87 Million). So certainly 90 million, if used smartly is more than enough to be a playoff and potentially world series team. It is about double what both the Rays (41 million) and the Diamondbacks (53 million) spent and both made the playoffs.
Who are the Mets highest paid players?
I am sad to report that Mets top 5 highest paid players in order are:
Johan Santana 24 million
Jason Bay 16 million
David Wright 15 million
Frank Francisco 5.5 million
Mike Pelfrey 5.5 million
About 45% percent of our salary is taken up solely by Jason Bay and Johan Santana, in terms of salary, they are equal to about one Tampa Bay Rays. When you throw D Wright in there, the total is about 61% of the entire teams salary on three guys. One who has been consistently bad and another who hasn't played since 2010. When I say I am looking forward to getting rid of the last remnants of the Minaya regime, this is what I am talking about. Freeing up 40 million dollars we are wasting on Bay and Santana and allocating that to a few guys who could make a long term impact.
How much bang are the Mets getting for their buck?
The answer is not so much. The standard used is a team should pay around 5 million dollars per win, using 2011 WAR to judge wins, the Mets don't look so hot. Bay who is getting 16 million dollars this year, posted 0.7 WAR in 2011, according to the 5 million dollar per win standard, he should be posting a WAR just over 3 this year, something he has not done since 2009. Johan should be due a WAR over just under 5, something he hasn't done since his first season with Mets in 2008.
Who had the best value? why R.A. Dickey of course. R.A. posted a 2.8 WAR last year and is due just 4.25 million dollars, based on this standard he should be due just under 15 million.
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