RRosternomics
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NH

Neal Huntington

Born Feb 4, 1969 · Hillsborough County, NH · age 57

Rebuilt the Pittsburgh Pirates through drafting and analytics into three straight playoff teams (2013–2015), ending two decades of losing.

12 seasons with salary-era data across 1 stint. All figures are franchise-level outcomes during the tenure, not solely attributable to one executive.

Overview

Titles0
Pennants0
Playoffs3
Record921–1020
Win %0.474
-1.1GM WAR — wins above a replacement GM (org-adjusted, shrunk; per season) ±4.3106th/195 execs
5.8Depth — 2+ WAR regulars per season (the breadth that drives TAB, not stars)120th/195 execs
-6.6Dead WAR — WAR/yr bled by sub-replacement players (closer to 0 = better)164th/195 execs
49%Dead money — payroll on <0.5-WAR players (lower = better)178th/195 execs
$25MCheap-talent surplus — $/yr of value from cost-controlled (pre-arb/arb) players above their pay; the selection engine, and the stickiest GM skill we track62nd/195 execs
$19MDrafted surplus — cheap-talent surplus from his own draftees (the develop-from-the-draft engine)19th/195 execs
$2MTraded-for surplus — cheap-talent surplus from cost-controlled players he acquired via trade100th/195 execs
$3MInt'l surplus — cheap-talent surplus from his own international signees36th/195 execs
-16.8TAB — talent above budget — roster-construction alpha (talent your budget bought above expectation), tenure total137th/195 execs
+12.5WAB — realized wins (TAB + the non-repeatable luck of converting talent to wins)45th/195 execs
2.02Acquisition Leverage — playoff pts per acquired WAR, graded once in the year each deal's wins arrive (the repeatable decision skill)81st/195 execs
+87Roster surplus $M14th/195 execs

Tenure breakdown

TeamRoleYearsSzns WAB WAB/yr TAB WAR surp HG Trade FA R5 AcqLev W-L% POPenWS Surp $M
▸ Pirates GM 2008–2019 12 +12.5 +1.04 -16.8 +25.9 +96.1 +21.5 -59.3 -0.4 2.02 0.474 3–– +87
Career total (1985+ data) 12 +12.5 -16.8 +25.9 +96.1 +21.5 -59.3 -0.4 2.02 0.474 3– – +87

Roster Construction

How the roster was sourced

by valueby volume

Share of acquired fWAR by channel vs. league average.

Build channels — net fWAR

Acquired minus surrendered / signed minus walked.

Home-grown (draft/intl)+96.1
Trade+21.5
Free agency-59.3
Rule 5 / minor draft-0.4
Sourcing mix: 48% draft · 18% FA · 34% trade · 0% R5

Roster value distribution — career average — depth vs. stars

Every roster slot ranked best→worst by WAR, averaged across Neal Huntington'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.

Players acquired — 227 players, by realized fWAR for the franchise (scroll for more)

PlayerPosTeam How Year Szns fWAR WAR/yr Lev
Bryan Reynolds OF PIT Trade 2018 8 +21.4 +2.7 –
Gerrit Cole P PIT Draft 2011 5 +16.3 +3.3 –
Mitch Keller P PIT Draft 2014 7 +13.0 +1.9 –
Josh Harrison 2B/3B PIT Trade 2009 7 +11.9 +1.7 –
Russell Martin C PIT Free agency 2012 2 +11.1 +5.6 19.9
Francisco Cervelli C PIT Trade 2015 4 +10.9 +2.7 33.5
Jordy Mercer SS PIT Draft 2008 7 +10.3 +1.5 –
Ke'Bryan Hayes 3B PIT Draft 2015 6 +10.2 +1.7 –
Jameson Taillon P PIT Draft 2010 4 +9.0 +2.2 –
Oneil Cruz SS/OF PIT Trade 2017 6 +8.5 +1.4 –
Francisco Liriano P PIT Free agency 2013 5 +8.3 +1.7 11.7
Joe Musgrove P PIT Trade 2018 3 +6.8 +2.3 2.6
Mark Melancon P PIT Trade 2013 4 +6.7 +1.7 10.2
Pedro Álvarez 3B PIT Draft 2008 5 +6.6 +1.3 –
Felipe Vázquez P PIT Trade 2016 4 +6.5 +1.6 0.1
Adam Frazier 2B/OF PIT Draft 2013 7 +6.2 +0.9 –
Gregory Polanco OF PIT Intl FA 2009 5 +6.0 +1.2 –
Jung Ho Kang 3B/SS PIT Draft 2015 3 +5.8 +1.9 –
Jacob Stallings C PIT Draft 2012 5 +5.7 +1.1 –
Charlie Morton P PIT Trade 2009 6 +5.6 +0.9 0.2
Trevor Williams P PIT Trade 2015 3 +5.4 +1.8 –
Josh Bell 1B/DH PIT Draft 2011 3 +5.0 +1.7 –
Garrett Jones 1B/OF PIT Free agency 2008 3 +5.0 +1.7 0.3
James McDonald P PIT Trade 2010 4 +4.2 +1.1 0.0
Corey Dickerson OF PIT Trade 2018 2 +3.8 +1.9 3.4
Jeff Karstens P PIT Trade 2008 5 +3.7 +0.7 0.1
David Freese 3B PIT Free agency 2016 3 +3.5 +1.2 0.8
Jason Grilli P PIT Free agency 2011 3 +3.3 +1.1 0.0
Steven Brault P PIT Trade 2015 5 +3.2 +0.6 –
Chad Kuhl P PIT Draft 2013 4 +3.2 +0.8 –
Joel Hanrahan P PIT Trade 2009 3 +3.0 +1.0 0.1
JT Brubaker P PIT Draft 2015 3 +2.9 +1.0 –
A. J. Burnett P PIT Free agency 2014 3 +2.5 +0.8 0.4
Iván Nova P PIT Trade 2016 3 +2.2 +0.7 0.8
José Tábata OF PIT Trade 2008 3 +2.2 +0.7 –
Jeff Locke P PIT Trade 2009 5 +2.1 +0.4 –
Chris Stewart C PIT Trade 2014 2 +2.1 +1.0 10.1
Chris Stratton P PIT Trade 2019 4 +2.0 +0.5 0.1
J. A. Happ P PIT Trade 2015 1 +1.9 +1.9 9.6
Matt Joyce OF PIT Free agency 2016 1 +1.8 +1.8 0.8
Ross Ohlendorf P PIT Trade 2008 3 +1.8 +0.6 0.0
Ronny Cedeño SS PIT Trade 2009 3 +1.7 +0.6 0.0
Vance Worley P PIT Trade 2014 2 +1.7 +0.8 8.1
Kevin Newman 2B/SS PIT Draft 2015 2 +1.6 +0.8 –
Sean Rodríguez 2B PIT Free agency 2015 1 +1.6 +1.6 1.0
Travis Snider OF PIT Trade 2012 3 +1.6 +0.5 0.0
Brandon Cumpton P PIT Draft 2010 2 +1.5 +0.7 –
Colin Moran 1B/3B PIT Trade 2018 3 +1.5 +0.5 0.7
Richard Rodríguez P PIT Free agency 2017 3 +1.5 +0.5 1.6
Andy LaRoche 3B PIT Trade 2008 1 +1.4 +1.4 0.2
Juan Nicasio P PIT Free agency 2015 2 +1.4 +0.7 0.6
Érik Bédard P PIT Free agency 2011 1 +1.3 +1.3 0.2
Gaby Sánchez 1B PIT Trade 2012 3 +1.2 +0.4 0.0
Chris Resop P PIT Trade 2010 3 +1.1 +0.4 0.0
John Jaso C PIT Free agency 2015 2 +1.0 +0.5 0.3
Chris Snyder C PIT Trade 2010 2 +0.9 +0.5 0.0
Derrek Lee 1B PIT Trade 2011 1 +0.9 +0.9 0.1
Rodolfo Castro 2B/SS PIT Intl FA 2015 1 +0.8 +0.8 –
Doug Mientkiewicz 1B PIT Free agency 2008 1 +0.8 +0.8 0.1
Joakim Soria P PIT Trade 2015 1 +0.8 +0.8 3.9
Chris Archer P PIT Trade 2018 2 +0.7 +0.3 0.9
Edgar Santana P PIT Intl FA 2013 2 +0.7 +0.3 –
José Veras P PIT Free agency 2011 1 +0.7 +0.7 0.0
Marlon Byrd OF PIT Trade 2013 1 +0.7 +0.7 2.9
Chris Leroux P PIT Trade 2010 3 +0.7 +0.2 0.0
A. J. Schugel P PIT Trade 2016 2 +0.7 +0.4 0.3
Jordan Lyles P PIT Trade 2019 1 +0.7 +0.7 0.3
Kevin Correia P PIT Free agency 2010 2 +0.6 +0.3 0.0
Justin Wilson P PIT Draft 2008 3 +0.6 +0.2 –
Joe Blanton P PIT Trade 2015 1 +0.6 +0.6 3.0
Keone Kela P PIT Trade 2018 2 +0.6 +0.3 0.4
Max Kranick P PIT Draft 2016 2 +0.5 +0.2 –
Lastings Milledge OF PIT Trade 2009 2 +0.5 +0.2 0.1
Tony Sanchez C PIT Draft 2009 3 +0.5 +0.2 –
Casey McGehee 3B PIT Trade 2012 1 +0.5 +0.5 0.1
Clint Barmes 2B/SS PIT Free agency 2011 2 +0.4 +0.2 0.1
Kyle Crick P PIT Trade 2018 3 +0.4 +0.1 1.2
Raúl Chávez C PIT Trade 2008 1 +0.4 +0.4 0.0
Octavio Dotel P PIT Trade 2010 1 +0.4 +0.4 0.0
Eric Hinske 3B/OF PIT Trade 2009 1 +0.4 +0.4 0.1
Nick Burdi P PIT Trade 2017 2 +0.3 +0.2 –
Pedro Ciriaco 3B/SS PIT Trade 2010 2 +0.3 +0.2 –
Wil Ledezma P PIT Free agency 2009 1 +0.3 +0.3 0.0
Edinson Vólquez P PIT Free agency 2013 1 +0.3 +0.3 2.2
Kevin Hart P PIT Trade 2009 1 +0.3 +0.3 0.0
Ty Taubenheim P PIT Trade 2008 1 +0.3 +0.3 0.0
Denny Bautista P PIT Trade 2008 2 +0.2 +0.1 0.0
Christopher Bostick 2B/OF PIT Trade 2016 1 +0.2 +0.2 –
Eric Fryer C PIT Trade 2009 2 +0.2 +0.1 –
John Holdzkom P PIT Trade 2014 1 +0.2 +0.2 –
Daniel Hudson P PIT Free agency 2016 1 +0.2 +0.2 0.1
Ryan Lavarnway C PIT Free agency 2018 1 +0.2 +0.2 0.2
Wade LeBlanc P PIT Trade 2016 2 +0.2 +0.1 0.2
Josh Lindblom P PIT Free agency 2017 1 +0.2 +0.2 0.1
Max Moroff 2B/SS PIT Draft 2012 1 +0.2 +0.2 –
Pablo Reyes OF PIT Intl FA 2012 1 +0.2 +0.2 –
Virgil Vasquez P PIT Free agency 2009 1 +0.2 +0.2 0.0
Chan Ho Park P PIT Trade 2010 1 +0.2 +0.2 0.0
D. J. Carrasco P PIT Trade 2010 1 +0.2 +0.2 0.0
Chad Qualls P PIT Trade 2012 1 +0.2 +0.2 0.0
Vin Mazzaro P PIT Trade 2013 1 +0.2 +0.2 1.7
Ike Davis 1B PIT Trade 2014 1 +0.2 +0.2 1.6
Chris Bootcheck P PIT Free agency 2008 1 +0.1 +0.1 0.0
Brian Burres P PIT Free agency 2009 1 +0.1 +0.1 0.0
Blake Cederlind P PIT Draft 2016 1 +0.1 +0.1 –
Jason Davis P PIT Free agency 2008 1 +0.1 +0.1 0.0
Michael Feliz P PIT Trade 2018 3 +0.1 +0.0 0.2
Tyler Glasnow P PIT Draft 2011 2 +0.1 +0.0 –
Phil Irwin P PIT Draft 2009 1 +0.1 +0.1 –
Kris Johnson P PIT Trade 2013 1 +0.1 +0.1 –
Gift Ngoepe 2B/SS PIT Intl FA 2008 1 +0.1 +0.1 –
Kyle Farnsworth P PIT Trade 2013 1 +0.1 +0.1 0.2
John Axford P PIT Trade 2014 1 +0.1 +0.1 0.4
Travis Ishikawa 1B PIT Trade 2014 1 +0.1 +0.1 1.2
Antonio Bastardo P PIT Trade 2015 2 +0.1 +0.0 2.5
Garrett Olson P PIT Trade 2011 1 +0.1 +0.1 0.0
Joe Martinez P PIT Trade 2010 1 +0.1 +0.1 0.0
Enny Romero P PIT Trade 2018 1 +0.1 +0.1 0.2
Jack Leathersich P PIT Trade 2017 1 +0.1 +0.1 0.1
John Bormann PH/PR PIT Draft 2015 – -0.0 – –
Juan Cruz P PIT Free agency 2012 1 +0.0 +0.0 0.0
Eric Hacker P PIT Trade 2009 1 +0.0 +0.0 –
Jordan Luplow OF PIT Draft 2014 1 +0.0 +0.0 –
Curtis Partch P PIT Free agency 2015 – -0.0 – –
Stolmy Pimentel P PIT Trade 2012 1 -0.0 -0.0 –
John Raynor OF PIT Rule 5 2009 – -0.0 – –
Ryan Reid P PIT Trade 2013 – -0.0 – –
Casey Sadler P PIT Draft 2010 – -0.0 – –
Rick van den Hurk P PIT Free agency 2012 1 +0.0 +0.0 0.0
Ryan Vogelsong P PIT Free agency 2015 5 +0.0 +0.0 0.2
Chris Volstad P PIT Free agency 2015 1 +0.0 +0.0 0.1
Brandon Waddell P PIT Draft 2015 1 +0.0 +0.0 –
Duke Welker P PIT Trade 2013 1 +0.0 +0.0 –
Jack Taschner P PIT Trade 2010 1 +0.0 +0.0 0.0
Zach Phillips P PIT Trade 2016 1 +0.0 +0.0 0.0
Phil Coke P PIT Trade 2016 1 +0.0 +0.0 0.0
Bobby LaFromboise P PIT Trade 2015 1 +0.0 +0.0 0.4
Chris Jakubauskas P PIT Trade 2010 1 +0.0 +0.0 0.0
Jhan Mariñez P PIT Trade 2017 1 +0.0 +0.0 0.0
Drew Hutchison P PIT Trade 2016 1 +0.0 +0.0 0.0
Wei-Chung Wang P PIT Trade 2019 1 +0.0 +0.0 0.0
Tanner Anderson P PIT Draft 2015 1 -0.1 -0.1 –
Steven Baron C PIT Free agency 2019 – -0.1 – –
Brian Bass P PIT Free agency 2010 – -0.1 – –
Wilfredo Boscán P PIT Trade 2016 – -0.1 – –
Keon Broxton OF PIT Trade 2014 – -0.1 – –
Montana DuRapau P PIT Draft 2014 – -0.1 – –
Luis Escobar P PIT Intl FA 2013 – -0.1 – –
Neftalí Feliz P PIT Free agency 2016 – -0.1 – –
Gorkys Hernández OF PIT Free agency 2014 1 -0.1 -0.1 0.0
Hunter Owen OF PIT Draft 2016 – -0.1 – –
Joshua Rodriguez SS PIT Rule 5 2010 – -0.1 – –
Jason Rogers 1B PIT Trade 2015 – -0.1 – –
JB Shuck OF PIT Free agency 2019 – -0.1 – –
Doug Slaten P PIT Free agency 2012 – -0.1 – –
Aaron Thompson P PIT Trade 2010 – -0.1 – –
Wyatt Toregas C PIT Free agency 2011 – -0.1 – –
Delwyn Young 2B/OF PIT Trade 2009 1 -0.1 -0.1 0.0
José Ascanio P PIT Trade 2009 1 -0.1 -0.1 0.0
Arquimedes Caminero P PIT Trade 2015 1 -0.1 -0.1 0.6
George Kontos P PIT Trade 2017 1 -0.1 -0.1 0.2
Dario Agrazal P PIT Intl FA 2012 – -0.2 – –
José Contreras P PIT Free agency 2013 – -0.2 – –
Rookie Davis P PIT Free agency 2019 – -0.2 – –
Jaff Decker OF PIT Trade 2013 – -0.2 – –
Miguel Del Pozo P PIT Free agency 2019 – -0.2 – –
Cole Figueroa 2B PIT Free agency 2015 – -0.2 – –
Alen Hanson 2B/OF PIT Intl FA 2009 – -0.2 – –
Brock Holt 2B/3B/OF PIT Draft 2009 – -0.2 – –
Steven Jackson P PIT Trade 2009 1 -0.2 -0.2 –
Cory Luebke P PIT Free agency 2016 – -0.2 – –
Kelvin Marte P PIT Trade 2016 – -0.2 – –
Jason Martin OF PIT Trade 2018 – -0.2 – –
James Marvel P PIT Draft 2015 – -0.2 – –
Mike Morse 1B/OF PIT Trade 2015 1 -0.2 -0.2 1.6
Danny Ortiz OF PIT Trade 2017 – -0.2 – –
Dan Runzler P PIT Free agency 2016 – -0.2 – –
Justin Thomas P PIT Free agency 2010 – -0.2 – –
Ramón Vázquez 3B/SS PIT Free agency 2008 – -0.2 – –
Tyler Yates P PIT Free agency 2009 1 -0.2 -0.2 0.0
Phil Dumatrait P PIT Trade 2008 1 -0.2 -0.2 0.0
Brent Morel 3B PIT Trade 2015 1 -0.2 -0.2 0.3
Melky Cabrera OF PIT Free agency 2019 – -0.3 – –
Jeff Clement C/1B PIT Trade 2009 – -0.3 – –
Jeff Clement C/1B PIT Free agency 2011 – -0.3 – –
Argenis Díaz SS PIT Trade 2009 – -0.3 – –
Phillip Evans 3B/OF PIT Free agency 2019 1 -0.3 -0.3 0.1
Jeanmar Gómez P PIT Trade 2013 1 -0.3 -0.3 0.4
Deolis Guerra P PIT Trade 2015 – -0.3 – –
Matt Hague 1B PIT Draft 2008 – -0.3 – –
Geoff Hartlieb P PIT Draft 2016 – -0.3 – –
Clay Holmes P PIT Draft 2011 2 -0.3 -0.2 –
Nick Kingham P PIT Draft 2010 – -0.3 – –
Radhames Liz P PIT Free agency 2014 – -0.3 – –
Jeff Salazar OF PIT Free agency 2008 – -0.3 – –
Ángel Sánchez P PIT Trade 2014 – -0.3 – –
Rob Scahill P PIT Trade 2014 1 -0.3 -0.3 0.0
Donnie Veal P PIT Rule 5 2008 – -0.3 – –
Tim Wood P PIT Free agency 2011 – -0.3 – –
Dusty Brown C PIT Free agency 2010 – -0.4 – –
Luis Cruz 3B/SS PIT Trade 2008 – -0.4 – –
Andrew Lambo OF PIT Trade 2010 2 -0.4 -0.2 –
Michael Martínez 2B/OF PIT Free agency 2013 – -0.4 – –
Nick Mears P PIT Intl FA 2018 1 -0.4 -0.4 –
Craig Monroe OF PIT Free agency 2009 – -0.4 – –
Brandon Moss 1B/OF PIT Trade 2008 1 -0.4 -0.4 0.0
Yamaico Navarro 3B/SS PIT Trade 2011 – -0.4 – –
Félix Pie OF PIT Free agency 2012 – -0.4 – –
Cody Ponce P PIT Trade 2019 – -0.4 – –
Corey Hart OF PIT Free agency 2014 – -0.5 – –
Jared Oliva OF PIT Draft 2017 – -0.5 – –
Will Craig 1B PIT Draft 2016 – -0.6 – –
Wandy Rodríguez P PIT Trade 2012 2 -0.6 -0.3 0.1
Chase d'Arnaud 3B/SS PIT Draft 2008 – -0.7 – –
Brandon Inge 3B PIT Free agency 2013 – -0.7 – –
Alex McRae P PIT Draft 2014 – -0.7 – –
Jonathan Sánchez P PIT Free agency 2013 – -0.7 – –
Elías Díaz C PIT Intl FA 2008 1 -0.9 -0.9 –
Daniel McCutchen P PIT Trade 2008 1 -0.9 -0.9 –
José Osuna 1B/OF PIT Intl FA 2009 – -0.9 – –
Bryan Morris P PIT Trade 2008 1 -1.0 -1.0 –
Dovydas Neverauskas P PIT Intl FA 2009 – -1.0 – –
Kevin Kramer 2B/3B/OF PIT Draft 2015 – -1.1 – –
Michael McKenry C PIT Trade 2012 1 -1.5 -1.5 0.0
Jason Jaramillo C PIT Trade 2008 – -1.7 – –
Cole Tucker SS/OF PIT Draft 2014 – -1.8 – –
Rod Barajas C PIT Free agency 2011 – -2.6 – –

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.

Graphs

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Rosternomics — quantifying front-office skill, attribution-clean. Follow @rosternomics on X. Decision-makers on record back to 1933; resource-controlled metrics (WAR & payroll) cover 1985–2026.
Data: FanGraphs (WAR), Baseball-Reference & the Chadwick Bureau register (rosters, IDs), the Lahman Database, Baseball America prospect rankings (via The Baseball Cube), and public payroll records. Transaction and trade data was obtained free of charge from and is copyrighted by Retrosheet. Executive birth/death data via Wikidata (CC0); bios are original. Emoji graphics by OpenMoji (CC BY-SA 4.0).
All figures are franchise-level outcomes credited to the decision-maker in the acquisition year — not solely attributable to one executive.