This has definitely been a season which, so far, has shown spending big is no guarantee of success. If you look at the top 10 teams by cash payroll, half of them – the Mets, Phillies, Blue Jays, Astros and Giants – would not be in the playoffs, if the season ended today. All but the Phillies are below .500. Conversely, the last-placed by payroll Guardians are leading their division, while Tampa and Milwaukee are other teams on top of their division, while in the bottom half by payroll. Of course,
it’s still relatively early. But we’ve seen before how, well before the one-third point, the standings become a pretty reliable guide to the post-season.
While the D-backs stand lower in total payroll, the harsh fact is that the team’s spending has not been very productive so far either. If we look at their top contracts this year (and excluding Nolan Arenado, since the Cardinals are responsible for the vast bulk of what he’s getting paid), here’s what we find.
- Corbin Burnes, $31.7 million, zero appearances
- Eduardo Rodriguez, $21 million, 2.3 bWAR
- Merrill Kelly, $20 million, 0.0 bWAR
- Zac Gallen, $16.2 million, -0.5 bWAR
- Ketel Marte, $15 million, 1.2 bWAR
- Lourdes Gurriel, $13 million, -0.3 bWAR, currently injured
That’s a total of almost $117 million being paid to these six players this year, for a total of 2.7 bWAR thus far. Only two are living up to their contracts this season, and E-Rod is probably still in the red overall, after getting paid $34 million in 2024-25 for half a win. Now, the math may change when Burnes returns, but he’ll also be starting in an overdraft situation, after missing most of last season. I’m trying to think of the last multi-season contract Arizona gave a free agent player, that turned out to be worth the money. It’s certainly been a while. I’m increasingly inclined to feel player development is perhaps more important than big-ticket free-agents.
And we welcome PhoenixSportsFan to the site, for his first guest recap of 2026! May it be a sweep-avoiding one…
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