Oct 19, 1927 (Central City, NE) – Oct 5, 2006 · died at 78
General manager for the Reds and Astros (1979–1987).
2 seasons with salary-era data across 2 stints. All figures are franchise-level outcomes during the tenure, not solely attributable to one executive.
| Team | Role | Years | Szns | WAB | WAB/yr | TAB | WAR surp | HG | Trade | FA | R5 | AcqLev | W-L% | PO | Pen | WS | Surp $M |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ▸ Astros | GM | 1986–1987 | 2 | +8.0 | +4.00 | +5.0 | +1.1 | +77.9 | +2.2 | -12.7 | +0.0 | 6.91 | 0.531 | 1 | – | – | +0 |
| ▸ Reds | GM | 1979–1983 | 0 | +0.0 | – | +0.0 | +0.0 | +121.7 | -9.2 | -5.7 | +0.1 | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Career total (1985+ data) | 2 | +8.0 | +5.0 | +1.1 | +199.7 | -7.0 | -18.4 | +0.1 | 6.91 | 0.531 | 1 | – | – | +0 | |||
Acquired minus surrendered / signed minus walked.
Every roster slot ranked best→worst by WAR, averaged across Dick Wagner's seasons. Bars = his rosters; the black line = the league-average player at each slot. Staying above the line deep into the roster is the depth edge.
| Player | Pos | Team | How | Year | Szns | fWAR | WAR/yr | Lev |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Craig Biggio | 2B | HOU | Draft | 1987 | 19 | +65.8 | +3.5 | – |
| Eric Davis | OF | CIN | Draft | 1980 | 8 | +28.2 | +3.5 | – |
| Chris Sabo | 3B | CIN | Draft | 1983 | 7 | +17.9 | +2.6 | – |
| Tom Browning | P | CIN | Draft | 1982 | 9 | +16.8 | +1.9 | – |
| Paul O'Neill | OF | CIN | Draft | 1981 | 7 | +14.2 | +2.0 | – |
| Rob Dibble | P | CIN | Draft | 1983 | 5 | +13.7 | +2.7 | – |
| Darryl Kile | P | HOU | Draft | 1987 | 6 | +13.3 | +2.2 | – |
| Kal Daniels | OF | CIN | Draft | 1982 | 4 | +11.4 | +2.8 | – |
| Joe Oliver | C | CIN | Draft | 1983 | 6 | +7.3 | +1.2 | – |
| Ron Robinson | P | CIN | Draft | 1980 | 6 | +6.8 | +1.1 | – |
| John Franco | P | CIN | Trade | 1983 | 5 | +6.3 | +1.3 | – |
| Larry Andersen | P | HOU | Free agency | 1986 | 5 | +5.2 | +1.0 | 2.3 |
| Billy Hatcher | OF | HOU | Trade | 1986 | 4 | +4.7 | +1.2 | 8.4 |
| Rob Murphy | P | CIN | Draft | 1981 | 3 | +4.0 | +1.3 | – |
| Ted Power | P | CIN | Trade | 1982 | 4 | +4.0 | +1.0 | – |
| Danny Darwin | P | HOU | Trade | 1986 | 5 | +2.8 | +0.6 | 8.3 |
| Tracy Jones | OF | CIN | Draft | 1983 | 3 | +2.5 | +0.8 | – |
| Andújar Cedeño | SS | HOU | Intl FA | 1986 | 3 | +1.9 | +0.6 | – |
| Lenny Harris | 3B | CIN | Draft | 1983 | 5 | +1.4 | +0.3 | – |
| Eric Anthony | OF | HOU | Draft | 1986 | 3 | +1.4 | +0.5 | – |
| Wayne Krenchicki | 3B | CIN | Trade | 1982 | 1 | +1.1 | +1.1 | – |
| Terry McGriff | C | CIN | Draft | 1981 | 2 | +0.2 | +0.1 | – |
| Dean Hartgraves | P | HOU | Draft | 1987 | 1 | +0.2 | +0.2 | – |
| Jeff Montgomery | P | CIN | Draft | 1983 | 1 | +0.1 | +0.1 | – |
| Randy Hennis | P | HOU | Draft | 1987 | 1 | +0.1 | +0.1 | – |
| Davey Lopes | 2B | HOU | Free agency | 1986 | 2 | +0.1 | +0.1 | 3.9 |
| Dan Driessen | 1B | HOU | Trade | 1986 | 1 | +0.1 | +0.1 | 0.8 |
| Paul Householder | OF | HOU | Free agency | 1987 | – | -0.0 | – | – |
| Ty Waller | 3B/OF | HOU | Trade | 1987 | – | -0.0 | – | – |
| Rocky Childress | P | HOU | Trade | 1987 | 1 | -0.0 | -0.0 | 0.0 |
| Dann Bilardello | C | CIN | Rule 5 | 1982 | – | -0.1 | – | – |
| Terry Lee | 1B | CIN | Intl FA | 1982 | 1 | -0.1 | -0.1 | – |
| Mike Smith | P | CIN | Intl FA | 1981 | 1 | -0.1 | -0.1 | – |
| Gary Cooper | 3B | HOU | Draft | 1986 | – | -0.1 | – | – |
| Dale Berra | 3B/SS | HOU | Free agency | 1986 | – | -0.2 | – | – |
| Lloyd McClendon | OF | CIN | Trade | 1982 | – | -0.3 | – | – |
| Leo García | OF | CIN | Trade | 1982 | – | -0.4 | – | – |
| Wade Rowdon | 3B | CIN | Trade | 1982 | 1 | -0.4 | -0.4 | – |
| Scott Terry | P | CIN | Draft | 1980 | – | -0.4 | – | – |
| Juan Agosto | P | HOU | Free agency | 1987 | 2 | -0.4 | -0.2 | 0.0 |
| Aurelio López | P | HOU | Free agency | 1986 | – | -0.4 | – | – |
| Ryan Bowen | P | HOU | Draft | 1986 | 1 | -0.5 | -0.5 | – |
| Brian Meyer | P | HOU | Draft | 1986 | – | -0.5 | – | – |
| Andy Mota | 2B | HOU | Draft | 1987 | – | -0.5 | – | – |
| Karl Rhodes | OF | HOU | Draft | 1986 | 1 | -0.5 | -0.5 | – |
| Bob Buchanan | P | CIN | Draft | 1979 | – | -0.6 | – | – |
| Dave Rohde | 2B | HOU | Draft | 1986 | – | -0.6 | – | – |
| Ronn Reynolds | C | HOU | Trade | 1987 | – | -0.9 | – | – |
| Kurt Stillwell | SS | CIN | Draft | 1983 | – | -1.4 | – | – |
| Al Osuna | P | HOU | Draft | 1987 | – | -1.9 | – | – |
WAB = wins above what the team's payroll predicted (resource-controlled). WAR surplus = era-neutral value (WAR minus payroll in win-equivalents). Roster surplus $M = dollar value of WAR over cost. Build channels (realized fWAR): HG = home-grown via amateur draft / international signing; Trade = acquired minus surrendered (incl. purchases/waivers); FA = signed minus walked; R5 = Rule-5 / minor-league-draft pickups. Credit follows the acquisition year — home-grown to the regime at the player's draft/signing (not whoever was in the chair when he peaked), trade/FA/R5 to the GM who made the move. Players acquired as prospects before debuting (e.g. Smoltz, Bagwell; Rule-5 picks like Uggla) are counted as trade/R5, not home-grown. All are franchise-level outcomes during the stint, not solely attributable to one executive.