Long-held baseball wisdom says pitching wins championships. But just how much money are MLB teams willing to invest in top-tier talent to capture a ring?
Some teams, like the reigning World Series champion San Francisco Giants , set aside a significant amount of their payroll to build a daunting starting rotation. Others, like the Tampa Bay Rays , elect to throw out cheap youngsters on the mound and devote most of their money to sign formidable hitters.
Which strategy is more effective? It’s hard to say — the correlation between a team’s pitching payroll and its winning percentage this season is slightly positive, but nothing that definitely indicates that more money equals more wins.
Pitching Payroll (millions) vs. Win Percentage | PointAfter
Nevertheless, there are several teams who far surpass the league average of $55.4 million for total pitching payroll. Click through to see which clubs aren’t afraid to put their money where their mouth is.
Note: All statistics in the text of this story are updated through games completed on May 14. All statistics in visualizations will auto-update.
Cleveland Indians
Cleveland Indians – 2015 Payroll | PointAfter
Money allotted to pitchers on 2015 payroll: $19.9 million
Percentage of payroll: 22%
Staff ERA in 2015: 4.49 (26th)
No franchise pays its pitchers a smaller proportion of the team payroll than the Indians, despite housing the reigning American League Cy Young winner (Corey Kluber) on their roster. That’s what you call value.
Tampa Bay Rays
Rays 2015 Salary Breakdown | PointAfter
Money allotted to pitchers on 2015 payroll: $29.9 million
Percentage of payroll: 39%
Staff ERA in 2015: 3.43 (6th)
The Rays actually spend more on their bullpen than they do on their rotation, which is chock full of promising young starters like Chris Archer and Alex Cobb.
Colorado Rockies
Rockies 2015 Salary Breakdown | PointAfter
Money allotted to pitchers on 2015 payroll: $30.6 million
Percentage of payroll: 33%
Staff ERA in 2015: 5.29 (30th)
The Rockies, who play in the most hitter-friendly ballpark in MLB, would probably do well to invest more money in pitching. They have the worst ERA in the league this year by a longshot.
Atlanta Braves
Braves 2015 Salary Breakdown | PointAfter
Money allotted to pitchers on 2015 payroll: $31.8 million
Percentage of payroll: 30%
Staff ERA in 2015: 4.36 (24th)
Atlanta is paying Dan Uggla nearly $13 million this year to hit game-winning homers against them as a member of their biggest division rival. It’s really a great time to be a Braves fan.
Houston Astros
Houston Astros – 2015 Payroll | PointAfter
Money allotted to pitchers on 2015 payroll: $34.6 million
Percentage of payroll: 48%
Staff ERA in 2015: 3.44 (7th)
The Astros are paying “ace” Scott Feldman $10 million this year, while their real best pitchers, Dallas Keuchel and Collin McHugh, are each barely making $500,000 in 2015.
Arizona Diamondbacks
Diamondbacks 2015 Salary Breakdown | PointAfter
Money allotted to pitchers on 2015 payroll: $35.1 million
Percentage of payroll: 40%
Staff ERA in 2015: 4.29 (23rd)
Thanks to the onerous contracts of former players Cody Ross and Trevor Cahill, the Diamondbacks actually have more dead money on their payroll than they do allotted for rotation members. Maybe that’s why they’ve been perennial bottom-feeders for the last several years.
New York Mets
Mets 2015 Salary Breakdown | PointAfter
Money allotted to pitchers on 2015 payroll: $38.2 million
Percentage of payroll: 37%
Staff ERA in 2015: 3.03 (2nd)
With cheap, productive youngsters like Matt Harvey and Jacob deGrom, the Mets are getting as much bang for their buck as any team in the Majors.
Oakland Athletics
Oakland Athletics – 2015 Payroll | PointAfter
Money allotted to pitchers on 2015 payroll: $38.2 million
Percentage of payroll: 46%
Staff ERA in 2015: 4.00 (15th)
It’s quite odd that the franchise known for developing Moneyball is paying two setup men (Tyler Clippard and Eric O’Flaherty) a combined $13.8 million this season when relievers are the sport’s most replaceable players.
Miami Marlins
Miami Marlins – 2015 Payroll | PointAfter
Money allotted to pitchers on 2015 payroll: $39.5 million
Percentage of payroll: 46%
Staff ERA in 2015: 4.13 (18th)
Three of Miami’s most dependable players are being paid by other teams this season. Since Giancarlo Stanton will soon be making $30 million per season, the Marlins would really benefit from sticking to that strategy going forward.
Toronto Blue Jays
Toronto Blue Jays – 2015 Payroll | PointAfter
Money allotted to pitchers on 2015 payroll: $43.5 million
Percentage of payroll: 35%
Staff ERA in 2015: 4.62 (28th)
The Jays are paying Mark Buehrle $20 million to be one of the league’s worst starters this year. The soft-tossing lefty might finally be over the hill.
Milwaukee Brewers
Milwaukee Brewers – 2015 Payroll | PointAfter
Money allotted to pitchers on 2015 payroll: $44.2 million
Percentage of payroll: 42%
Staff ERA in 2015: 4.56 (27th)
The Brewers traded Yovani Gallardo in the offseason for salary relief, but it’s costing them on the field. Kyle Lohse, Milwaukee’s second highest-paid starter, has an ERA over 7.00 a month into the season.
Pittsburgh Pirates
Pirates 2015 Salary Breakdown | PointAfter
Money allotted to pitchers on 2015 payroll: $45.6 million
Percentage of payroll: 50%
Staff ERA in 2015: 3.04 (3rd)
Like the Mets, the Pirates are getting fantastic returns on minimal investments. Their mix of cheap veterans (Francisco Liriano, A.J. Burnett) and elite prospects (Gerrit Cole) has blended together perfectly.
St. Louis Cardinals
Cardinals 2015 Salary Breakdown | PointAfter
Money allotted to pitchers on 2015 payroll: $50.1 million
Percentage of payroll: 41%
Staff ERA in 2014: 2.69 (1st)
The fact that St. Louis lost ace Adam Wainwright for the season yet still tops MLB in ERA by a wide margin is simply remarkable. Pitching coach Dave Duncan is a god amongst men.
Baltimore Orioles
Orioles 2015 Salary Breakdown | PointAfter
Money allotted to pitchers on 2015 payroll: $51.4 million
Percentage of payroll: 44%
Staff ERA in 2015: 4.17 (20th)
Baltimore is right near the league averages for both money allotted to pitchers ($55.4 million in MLB) and the proportion of payroll spent on pitchers (43.4 percent in MLB).
Seattle Mariners
Seattle Mariners – 2015 Payroll | PointAfter
Money allotted to pitchers on 2015 payroll: $51.8 million
Percentage of payroll: 42%
Staff ERA in 2015: 3.96 (14th)
In Seattle, the plan is this: Pay Robinson Cano, Nelson Cruz and Felix Hernandez boatloads of money and hope everything else works itself out.
Cincinnati Reds
Cincinnati Reds – 2015 Payroll | PointAfter
Money allotted to pitchers on 2015 payroll: $55.6 million
Percentage of payroll: 47%
Staff ERA in 2015: 3.84 (12th)
Despite a troubling injury to Homer Bailey, whom the Reds signed to a six-year, $105 million extension in February 2014, the Reds have maintained a solid rotation in 2015.
Minnesota Twins
Minnesota Twins 2015 Payroll | PointAfter
Money allotted to pitchers on 2015 payroll: $56.2 million
Percentage of payroll: 52%
Staff ERA in 2015: 4.13 (19th)
The Twins have miraculously stayed afloat in the AL Central thus far despite horrible return from their three highest-paid pitchers. Ervin Santana was suspended for PED use, while Ricky Nolasco and Phil Hughes have just been plain awful.
Chicago White Sox
White Sox 2015 Salary Breakdown | PointAfter
Money allotted to pitchers on 2015 payroll: $57.1 million
Percentage of payroll: 48%
Staff ERA in 2015: 4.44 (25th)
The White Sox cut Jeff Keppinger last year even though they owed him $4.5 million in 2015 so they could give younger players a chance to see the field in the South Side.
Kansas City Royals
Royals 2015 Salary Breakdown | PointAfter
Money allotted to pitchers on 2015 payroll: $57.2 million
Percentage of payroll: 51%
Staff ERA in 2015: 3.50 (8th)
The Royals pay their bullpen more than most clubs, but it’s really a small price to pay for the right to employ the fearsome trio of Kelvin Herrera, Wade Davis and Greg Holland.
Boston Red Sox
Boston Red Sox – 2015 Payroll | PointAfter
Money allotted to pitchers on 2015 payroll: $60.7 million
Percentage of payroll: 33%
Staff ERA in 2015: 4.79 (29th)
Boston’s meager investment in pitching (proportion to the whole sum of their payroll, anyway) partially stems from their preference to hand out big money contracts to hitters in recent years — their six highest-paid players are all hitters.
Los Angeles Angels
Angels 2015 Salary Breakdown | PointAfter
Money allotted to pitchers on 2015 payroll: $60.8 million
Percentage of payroll: 42%
Staff ERA in 2015: 3.51 (9th)
Jered Weaver (1-4, 4.98 ERA) hasn’t come close to living up to his $18 million salary in 2015, so it’s a good thing that the Angels have a stable of young hurlers like Matt Shoemaker and Garrett Richards to stilt up the rotation.
San Diego Padres
San Diego Padres – 2015 Payroll | PointAfter
Money allotted to pitchers on 2015 payroll: $61.0 million
Percentage of payroll: 48%
Staff ERA in 2015: 4.18 (21st)
Even though the Padres crack the top 10 here, the individual salaries for their pitchers don’t seem egregious. James Shields (four years, $75 million) was actually one of the bigger steals of the offseason, since pundits initially expected Shields to fetch nine digits on the free agent market.
Texas Rangers
Rangers 2015 Salary Breakdown | PointAfter
Money allotted to pitchers on 2015 payroll: $63.2 million
Percentage of payroll: 44%
Staff ERA in 2015: 4.08 (17th)
The Rangers are saddled with $13.2 million of what amounts to dead money via the contract of Matt Harrison, who might never pitch in the Majors again following a series of debilitating shoulder injuries.
Chicago Cubs
Cubs 2015 Salary Breakdown | PointAfter
Money allotted to pitchers on 2015 payroll: $68.1 million
Percentage of payroll: 57%
Staff ERA in 2015: 4.04 (16th)
No team allots a bigger proportion of its payroll to pitching than the Cubs, who made the biggest splash of the offseason by signing Jon Lester to a six-year, $155 million contact.
New York Yankees
Yankees 2015 Salary Breakdown | PointAfter
Money allotted to pitchers on 2015 payroll: $74.4 million
Percentage of payroll: 35%
Staff ERA in 2015: 3.41 (5th)
Over the last few years, the Yankees have quietly cut their big spending ways relatively short. So far this year, New York’s pitching staff is actually outperforming the expectations of their combined salaries.
Philadelphia Phillies
Phillies 2015 Salary Breakdown | PointAfter
Money allotted to pitchers on 2015 payroll: $76.1 million
Percentage of payroll: 51%
Staff ERA in 2015: 4.26 (22nd)
The Phillies are paying two starters more than $20 million each. Unfortunately, one of those starters is Cliff Lee, who hasn’t stepped on the mound yet this season due to a forearm strain and might have already made his last appearance at Citizens Bank Park.
Washington Nationals
Nationals 2015 Salary Breakdown | PointAfter
Money allotted to pitchers on 2015 payroll: $81.0 million
Percentage of payroll: 47%
Staff ERA in 2015: 3.90 (13th)
Washington’s rotation, which came into 2015 labeled as the best staff in the sport, has undoubtedly underachieved a little bit so far. Max Scherzer is the only starter with an ERA below 4.00, and Stephen Strasburg (6.06 ERA) has mysteriously performed like one of MLB’s worst starters thus far.
Detroit Tigers
Detroit Tigers – 2015 Payroll | PointAfter
Money allotted to pitchers on 2015 payroll: $92.7 million
Percentage of payroll: 54%
Staff ERA in 2015: 3.70 (11th)
There’s really no plausible scenario in which Detroit doesn’t regret the massive seven-year, $180 million contract the team handed Justin Verlander a couple years ago. The Tigers still have to pay the former Cy Young winner a whopping $162 million through 2020, which seems like a disaster waiting to happen since he’s seen his velocity dip significantly over the past two seasons.
San Francisco Giants
San Francisco Giants – 2015 Payroll | PointAfter
Money allotted to pitchers on 2015 payroll: $95.6 million
Percentage of payroll: 55%
Staff ERA in 2015: 3.60 (10th)
It’s hard to question Giants GM Brian Sabean, who has overseen the construction of three World Series squads over the past five seasons. But paying Matt Cain and Tim Lincecum a combined $38.8 million this season doesn’t look like it will turn out well.
Los Angeles Dodgers
Los Angeles Dodgers – 2015 Payroll | PointAfter
Money allotted to pitchers on 2015 payroll: $116.4 million
Percentage of payroll: 43%
Staff ERA in 2015: 3.24 (4th)
The Dodgers have nearly $45 million in dead money, which makes up 16 percent of their payroll. That’s more than the $26.4 million their bullpen collectively earns — not that any of that really matters to the Yankees of the National League. Los Angeles is paying its rotation nearly six times the amount that Tampa Bay does.