At the end of the regular season, Canadian Business Online compared player salaries to performance: Which players did the most — and the least — on a per-dollar basis? Now we turn to the best and worst values in the playoffs, focusing on the two teams that went the distance, the world champion Red Sox and the runner-up Rockies.
First, we should stress that it’s folly to evaluate a player on the basis of a short series… or even two or three. Any hitter can hit anything over a span of seven games. (Derek “Captain Clutch” Jeter has had six separate postseason series in which he failed to break the fabled “Mendoza Line” — a .200 batting average. Six!)
Mediocre Yankee 3B Scott Brosius was named the MVP of the 1998 World Series after hitting .471 with two home runs. His successor at the position, Alex Rodriguez, hit .133 and .071 in the 2005 and 2006 Division Series and — they may have mentioned this on TV once or twice — went a stretch of 57 playoff at-bats without an RBI. Is Scott “Proven Winner” Brosius a better postseason hitter than Alex “Overpaid Choker” Rodriguez? Despite what you might have read in the New York tabloids… no. Given a large enough sample size, the numbers tend to converge toward “reality.” Over 58 postseason games, Brosius hit a modest .245/.278/.418 — worse than his career averages. And even with those two horrible series, A-Rod has hit a respectable .279/.361/.483 in the postseason — disappointing for him, but nothing to scoff at. For comparison, Reggie Jackson hit .278/.358/.527 in the postseason and earned the nickname “Mr. October.”
Yes, even the worst hitter can get hot for a few days, and even the best hitter can have a bad stretch of 50 at-bats. So it’s unfair to say a player is a steal or a bust over a week or three… but that won’t stop us from trying.
The 2007 Red Sox and Rockies stood at opposite ends of the payscale — Boston’s World Series roster actually included 11 players making more than the second-highest-paid Rockie, Matt Holliday. The Sox operate as a true “big market” team, able to sign any free agents, and also able to retain their own players once they become expensive. The Rockies have been free spenders in the past — remember Mike Hampton and Denny Neagle? — but reached the 2007 World Series with youth, fiscal prudence… and Todd Helton.
Helton, the Rockies’ 1B since 1998, received one of the most ill-advised contracts in baseball history when the Rockies inked him to a nine-year, $141.5 million deal beginning in 2003. Helton may end up in Cooperstown, but the Rockies are paying him until he’s 37 and his numbers were already in decline when he signed his extension. This October, in his first postseason, Helton hit .220/.298/.317 with no homers and only 2 RBI. Not what you’d expect for $16.6 million, and he’s our biggest bust of the postseason.
Luckily for the cash-constrained Rockies, the cheap players picked up the slack. Starters Jeff Francis ($750,000) and Ubaldo Jimenez (half a season at the league minimum) pitched well against their NL opponents, and Manny Corpas ($382,000) was a shut-down closer when there was anything to shut down. On the offensive side, the Rockies got a .404 OBP from Brad Hawpe ($403,000) and a healthy .304/.347/.500 line from Kazuo Matsui ($1,500,000), while their sole “middle-class” hitter, Matt Holliday ($4,400,000), contributed 5 home runs and 10 RBI. None of the Rockies did much against the Sox, but other than Helton, you could argue that all of them justified their salaries — after all, you could hardly pay them any less.
The Red Sox had their share of low-paid gems, too. Kevin Youkilis ($424,500) and Dustin Pedroia ($380,000) torched the Indians in the ALCS, then passed the baton to Jacoby Ellsbury (one month at the league minimum) in the World Series. Overall, Pedroia hit .283/.348/.483, Ellsbury hit .360/.429/.520, and Youkilis hit .388/.475/.755 with 4 home runs, 10 RBI and 16 runs. On the mound, Hideki Okajima ($1,225,000) provided 9.2 scoreless innings before tiring against the Rockies, and dancin’ Jonathan Papelbon ($425,500) was untouchable throughout the playoffs, with 10.2 shutout innings and 4 saves.
Without the contributions of these young players, the Red Sox might have… well, they might have needed another two or three games to knock out the Rockies. Don’t kid yourselves, a $140+ million team payroll confers its share of advantages, and for the most part, the Red Sox in the highest tax bracket delivered. David Ortiz ($13,250,000) hit like Barry Bonds on (ahem) flaxseed oil, the often overlooked Mike Lowell ($9,000,000) was named MVP of the World Series, Curt Schilling ($13,000,000) added to his dictionary entry on “postseason dominance,” and Josh Beckett ($6,666,667) redefined it. Even the much-derided J.D. Drew ($14,400,000) had his moments. Only Julio Lugo ($8,250,000) and Eric Gagne ($6,000,000) were big-money busts, and minor ones at that.
And how about Boston’s highest-paid player? Manny Ramirez continued “being Manny.” A .348 average, 4 home runs, and 16 RBI: $17 million. Grandstanding after a home run when your team is behind 7-3… stopping by the dugout on your trip from third to home… running to first base with your helmet in your hands: Priceless.
Rockies Best Postseason Values:
Manny Corpas, 10.1 IP, 0.87 ERA, 0.58 WHIP, 5 SV – $382,000
Kazuo Matsui, 46 AB, 8.4 RC, .304/347/.500, 8 RBI, 2 SB – $1,500,000
Rockies Worst Postseason Values:
Todd Helton, 41 AB, 4.0 RC, .220/.298/.317, 0 HR, 2 RBI – $16,600,000
Brian Fuentes, 9.2 IP, 6.52 ERA, 2 HR allowed – $3,500,000
Red Sox Best Postseason Values:
Dustin Pedroia, 60 AB, 10.1 RC, .283/.348/.483, 2 HR, 10 RBI, 12 R – $380,000
Kevin Youkilis, 49 AB, 17.9, RC, .388/.475/.755, 4 HR, 10 RBI, 16 R – $424,500
Red Sox Worst Postseason Values:
Julio Lugo, 48 AB, 5.3 RC, .271/.340/.333, 0 HR, 3 RBI – $8,250,000
Eric Gagne, 4.1 IP, 0-1, 6.23 ERA – $6,000,000
That’s Why They Get the Big Money:
Manny Ramirez, 46 AB, 15.5 RC, .348/.508/.652, 4 HR, 10 RBI, 11 R – $17,016,381
David Ortiz, 46 AB, 16.5 RC, .370/.508/.696, 4 HR, 10 RBI, 16 R – $13,250,000
Curt Schilling, 24 IP, 3-0, 3.00 ERA, 16 K, 3 BB – $13,000,000
Josh Beckett, 30 IP, 3-0 1.20 ERA, 35 K, 2 BB – $6,666,667
Special Mentions:
Troy Tulowitzki, 41 AB, 3.4 RC, .195/.267/.341, 3 RBI, 3 R, 15 K – $381,000
* Despite making just slightly more than the league minimum, Tulowitzki’s hitting incompetence — more strikeouts than total bases — threatened to make him a “bad value.” The Colorado shortstop did play solid defence, but in the 21st century, shortstops are supposed to hit a little, too.
Jacoby Ellsbury, 1 SB – $233,498,766
* Ellsbury’s stolen base in Game 2 triggered Taco Bell’s “Steal a Base, Steal a Taco” promotion, offering everyone in the United States a free taco on Oct. 30. The population of the U.S. is 303,245,157 by the latest U.S. Census Bureau estimate, and a Crunchy Seasoned Beef Taco is worth 77¢ by the latest Taco Bell what-we’re-worth estimate. All hail Tacoby Bellsbury!
[Note: Batters are presented with “slash stats” — batting average/on-base percentage/slugging percentage.]
