When it comes to running a sports team, there are ultimately several factors that come into play that determine your ability win. Clearly, you have to be able to scout and evaluate talent. After that, getting those players under contract can be tricky. In doing so, it’s critical to make the best use of whatever revenue resources you have at your disposal. Money doesn’t buy championships, but let’s face it, it doesn’t hurt.

How effectively one spends money depends on how large those revenue resources are. While I’m sure that they don’t enjoy spending lavishly, the Yankees have clearly decided year-in-and-year-out to pour a league-leading amount into player payroll in an effort to consistently make the playoffs. They may not ultimately be the most efficient, but if you’re giving yourself a shot at a championship and money rolls in via television and the gate, well… so be it.

On the other hand, if you’re a low-revenue club, your risk increases dramatically. Clubs (normally) pick and choose very carefully when to spend more on player payroll for a given season to try and make a postseason push. Calculate incorrectly, however, and not only will they miss the playoffs but they could potentially kill their payroll flexibility for next season and possibly beyond. Being effective and efficient is what most clubs shoot for.

This year, MLB added two extra wild card teams—one in each league—and with it, playoff odds have increased. You can be double-digit wins out of the division race but be in the hunt for the wild card. (As an example, as of Sunday the Brewers are 13.5 games out of first in the NL Central but just 2.5 out of the NL wild card.)

It seems a quick gut-check of who is spending most efficiently is in order. Based on compensation data here at Baseball Prospectus, the following shows each of the 30 clubs by player payroll, with the addition of cost per win, where they sit in the division and wild card standings, and their current odds of making the playoffs.

Team Name	Payroll	$ Per Player	1 Year Delta	% Change	Wins	Cost Per Win	GB	GB (WC)	Odds
The rest of this article is restricted to Baseball Prospectus Subscribers. Not a subscriber? Click here for more information on Baseball Prospectus subscriptions or use the buttons to the right to subscribe and get access to the best baseball content on the web. Cancel anytime. That's a 33% savings over the monthly price! That's a 33% savings over the monthly price! Already a subscriber? Click here and use the blue login bar to log in. 7 comments have been left for this article. BP Comment Quick Links code of conduct anderson721 (18704) I think the Red Sox/Dodgers financial data might need tweaking. Sep 17, 2012 05:07 AM link rating: 3   jtwalsh (1154) The figure stating Boston's spendiing per win in the 3rdprincipal to last paragraph does not jibe with the chart -- FYI Sep 17, 2012 05:20 AM link rating: 0   John Erhardt BP staff (1414) Corrected. Thanks. Sep 17, 2012 06:22 AM link   Maury Brown BP staff (29778) Now... Let's see if Billy's (stuff) works in the postseason. Sep 17, 2012 07:20 AM link   amazin_mess (9525) Not an A's fan, but man I hope it does work this time. Sep 17, 2012 10:00 AM link rating: 2   John Douglass (53235) Given Oakland's competitive ecology (compared especially to a team like PIT that's cheap, but likely to finish under .500 in baseball's worst division) what Beane has done this year is pretty remarkable. Sep 17, 2012 16:55 PM link rating: 1   slimandslam (1789) Good to see the data, but as Maury well knows, the better way to measure bang-for-the-buck is in marginal cost per marginal win. After all, a team must spend the minimum salary for its roster; anything above that is discretionary. And every team is pretty much going to by about a .300 team with that kind of roster; anything above that shows something above minimum-salary talent. See this old BP article (and many after that) for a more lucid explanation: http://www.baseballprospectus.com/article.php?articleid=2648 Running the numbers above for marginal dollars spent per marginal win gives almost the same "top five": 1, Oakland 2. Pittsburgh 3. Tampa Bay 4. San Diego 5. Cincinnati However, the bottom five comes out a bit differently: 26. Philadelphia 27. Minnesota 28. Chicago Cubs 29. Boston 30. Houston (who have spent over 12 million dollars per marginal win so far) The Yankees, likely to make the playoffs, come in at number 25. The only other team in the "bottom ten" with a reasonable playoff shot is the Angels. I don't know what this proves; I just reflexively thought that MW/M$ was a better measure than W/$. Aside from that, it was just this cartoon come to life, for which I apologize: http://xkcd.com/386/ Sep 18, 2012 19:13 PM link rating: 1   Sorry, fantasy subscribers cannot comment on exclusive premium content. << Previous Article Transaction Analysis: ... (09/17) << Previous Column Bizball: The Strasburg... (09/10) Next Column >> Bizball: Astros Will U... (09/24) Next Article >> Pebble Hunting: Why We... (09/17) RECENTLY AT BASEBALL PROSPECTUS Daily Hit List: Friday, May 24 Transaction Analysis: Demotion Pictures What Makes a Good Changeup? What You Need to Know: Searching for Jesus Eyewitness Accounts: May 24, 2013 Overthinking It: The Longest Plate Appearanc... Overthinking It: This Week in Catcher Framin... MORE FROM SEPTEMBER 17, 2012 Fantasy Beat: Scherzer's Resurgent Second-Ha... Resident Fantasy Genius: Where to Find Last-... Value Picks: Second, Short, and Catcher for ... The Week In Quotes: September 10-16 Collateral Damage Daily: Monday, September 1... Daily Hit List: Monday, September 17 What You Need to Know: Monday, September 17 MORE BY MAURY BROWN 2012-10-08 - Bizball: Inside 2012 MLB Attendance, Plus Po... 2012-10-02 - Bizball: Do the Dodgers Really Have a “Sec... 2012-09-24 - Bizball: Astros Will Use Money to Pay Down D... 2012-09-17 - Bizball: Who is Getting the Most Bang for th... 2012-09-10 - Bizball: The Strasburg Shutdown and How It A... 2012-08-27 - Bizball: The Priciest Trade Ever Made 2012-08-20 - Bizball: How Low Will Jim Crane Go with the ... More... MORE BIZBALL 2012-10-08 - Bizball: Inside 2012 MLB Attendance, Plus Po... 2012-10-02 - Bizball: Do the Dodgers Really Have a “Sec... 2012-09-24 - Bizball: Astros Will Use Money to Pay Down D... 2012-09-17 - Bizball: Who is Getting the Most Bang for th... 2012-09-10 - Bizball: The Strasburg Shutdown and How It A... 2012-08-27 - Bizball: The Priciest Trade Ever Made 2012-08-20 - Bizball: How Low Will Jim Crane Go with the ... More... Baseball Prospectus Home  |  Terms of Service  |  Privacy Policy  |  Customer Service  |  Newsletter  |  Masthead  |  Glossary  |  Contact Us Copyright © 1996-2013 Prospectus Entertainment Ventures, LLC.            Surprise Me!