Angels Again Spend Big Bucks ... for What/

[u/jdorschner]

Once again, the big-market big-spending Angels have shown that money doesn’t buy happiness.  This year, they spent $2.8 million per win – more than twice as much as the playoff Guardians, Rays, White Sox and Brewers. Will a new owner turn things around?

The Guardians were the most cost-efficient team in baseball this year – spending a mere $934,118 per win – the only team under $1 million. And they made the playoffs. The least-efficient, once again, were the big-spending Mets, with the second highest payroll, spent $4.7 million per win. The Blue Jays also threw money away -- $3.65 million per win – and finished way behind the Rays, who had the best record in the American League with $1.1 million per win.

This is my ninth year measuring costs per win. I use Spotrac for salaries, because they measure all expenses, including injured and “buried,” meaning players getting paid who are now longer with the club. The Marlins, for example, with the second-smallest payroll in baseball, used $10 million of their overall $82.8 million to pay part of Giancarlo Stanton’s salary as a New York Yankee.

A lot of fans don’t like my efficiency measures. Each year, Angel fans’ basic response is they want the team to spend up to Dodger standards. As a Marlins fan told me on the team’s Reddit: “Can we just become inefficient and pay $380 million for 100 wins please?”

Still, the measure reveals how smart front offices in this era can navigate this era with wide gaps between the biggest and the smallest payrolls. The Rays, Guardians and Brewers are among the leaders year after year.

Baseball is the only major American sport without a salary cap, and owners have vowed to force a cap in the upcoming negotiations with the union. A cap is likely to include a floor, meaning the cheapest teams like the Marlins and A’s would be forced to spend more.

Smart spending can get a team into the playoffs, but when it comes to going all the way, big bucks still pave the way for ultimate victory. The last time a small-market team won a World Series was 2015 with the Royals. Will this year be different? Some union leaders may hope so – so they can claim there’s no need for a salary cap.

[u/ovdivad]

I would say things are changing. We need to relax and wait.

[u/EH1522]

This reads like brain rot. All we know is things will be changing. Will it work? We don't know, but hope so.

Absolutely way too much thought into information we don't have.

[u/IamPieBoy94]

K

[u/Troutmaggedon]

Is this AI?

[u/HungryHunngryHippo]

Is there a way to include the costs that teams spend on scouting and idk the front office personnel and minor league coaches, trainers, etc etc?

I’ve always felt like the Angels spend a lot on payroll but not in the other areas that help produce homegrown talent. I wonder if those things get taken into account if their cost per win compared to their peers decreases. I wonder where the Angels rank in those costs overall. Hopefully new ownership will invest in those areas.

[u/phatwarmachine41 → u/HungryHunngryHippo]

There really isn't since that's not public info. You kinda just have to infer it from things. Like it's well known that the Angels have long neglected those kind of expenses based on interviews from former players and some reporting from beat writers. Jeff Fletcher did a whole series of stories on how jacked up and neglected the Angels farm system has been dating back to the Reagins era. 

[u/UnboundedRange]

I would guess that teams with almost twice as many wins paid half as much per win based on basic math?