RRosternomics
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Ruben Amaro

Born Feb 12, 1965 · Philadelphia, PA · age 61

Took over the Philadelphia Phillies at their peak and added aces like Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee to a star-laden core that reached the 2009 World Series.

7 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
Pennants1
Playoffs3
Record582–552
Win %0.513
-2.6GM WAR — wins above a replacement GM (org-adjusted, shrunk; per season) ±5.2145th/195 execs
7.0Depth — 2+ WAR regulars per season (the breadth that drives TAB, not stars)56th/195 execs
-5.6Dead WAR — WAR/yr bled by sub-replacement players (closer to 0 = better)123rd/195 execs
32%Dead money — payroll on <0.5-WAR players (lower = better)87th/195 execs
$7MCheap-talent surplus — $/yr of value from cost-controlled (pre-arb/arb) players above their pay; the selection engine, and the stickiest GM skill we track123rd/195 execs
$3MDrafted surplus — cheap-talent surplus from his own draftees (the develop-from-the-draft engine)121st/195 execs
$0MTraded-for surplus — cheap-talent surplus from cost-controlled players he acquired via trade150th/195 execs
$4MInt'l surplus — cheap-talent surplus from his own international signees33rd/195 execs
-29.7TAB — talent above budget — roster-construction alpha (talent your budget bought above expectation), tenure total158th/195 execs
-25.4WAB — realized wins (TAB + the non-repeatable luck of converting talent to wins)156th/195 execs
3.71Acquisition Leverage — playoff pts per acquired WAR, graded once in the year each deal's wins arrive (the repeatable decision skill)22nd/195 execs
-433Roster surplus $M184th/195 execs

Tenure breakdown

TeamRoleYearsSzns WAB WAB/yr TAB WAR surp HG Trade FA R5 AcqLev W-L% POPenWS Surp $M
▸ Phillies GM 2009–2015 7 -25.4 -3.63 -29.7 -163.3 +88.6 -18.6 +8.4 +10.5 3.71 0.513 31– -433
Career total (1985+ data) 7 -25.4 -29.7 -163.3 +88.6 -18.6 +8.4 +10.5 3.71 0.513 31 – -433

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)+88.6
Trade-18.6
Free agency+8.4
Rule 5 / minor draft+10.5
Sourcing mix: 55% draft · 23% FA · 15% trade · 6% R5

Roster value distribution — career average — depth vs. stars

Every roster slot ranked best→worst by WAR, averaged across Ruben Amaro'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 — 136 players, by realized fWAR for the franchise (scroll for more)

PlayerPosTeam How Year Szns fWAR WAR/yr Lev
Aaron Nola P PHI Draft 2014 12 +37.9 +3.2 –
Cliff Lee P PHI Free agency 2010 5 +20.4 +4.1 13.8
Roy Halladay P PHI Trade 2010 3 +16.1 +5.4 21.5
Ranger Suarez P PHI Intl FA 2012 6 +15.7 +2.6 –
Odúbel Herrera OF PHI Rule 5 2014 6 +13.2 +2.2 –
Rhys Hoskins 1B PHI Draft 2014 6 +11.2 +1.9 –
Zach Eflin P PHI Trade 2014 6 +8.3 +1.4 –
Jerad Eickhoff P PHI Trade 2015 4 +5.7 +1.4 –
Héctor Neris P PHI Intl FA 2010 7 +4.7 +0.7 –
Jonathan Papelbon P PHI Free agency 2011 4 +4.5 +1.1 8.0
Roy Oswalt P PHI Trade 2010 2 +4.2 +2.1 5.6
Hunter Pence OF PHI Trade 2011 2 +4.0 +2.0 6.2
Ken Giles P PHI Draft 2011 2 +3.9 +2.0 –
Nick Pivetta P PHI Trade 2015 2 +3.6 +1.8 –
Aaron Altherr OF PHI Draft 2009 3 +3.4 +1.1 –
Maikel Franco 3B PHI Intl FA 2010 3 +3.4 +1.1 –
Jorge Alfaro C PHI Trade 2015 2 +2.9 +1.5 –
Erik Kratz C PHI Free agency 2010 3 +2.9 +1.0 0.1
Ben Revere OF PHI Trade 2012 3 +2.7 +0.9 0.2
Seranthony Domínguez P PHI Intl FA 2011 6 +2.6 +0.4 –
Raúl Ibañez OF PHI Trade 2009 2 +2.6 +1.3 19.9
Adam Morgan P PHI Draft 2011 5 +1.9 +0.4 –
A. J. Burnett P PHI Free agency 2014 1 +1.8 +1.8 1.2
Luis García P PHI Trade 2013 3 +1.7 +0.6 –
Chan Ho Park P PHI Free agency 2009 1 +1.6 +1.6 9.2
Juan Pierre OF PHI Free agency 2012 1 +1.6 +1.6 9.1
Cameron Rupp C PHI Draft 2010 3 +1.6 +0.5 –
Andrés Blanco 2B/SS PHI Free agency 2012 3 +1.4 +0.5 0.2
Roman Quinn OF PHI Draft 2011 5 +1.4 +0.3 –
David Buchanan P PHI Draft 2010 2 +1.3 +0.7 –
Aaron Harang P PHI Free agency 2015 1 +1.3 +1.3 0.1
Kevin Frandsen 2B/3B PHI Free agency 2011 1 +1.2 +1.2 7.2
Ben Lively P PHI Trade 2014 2 +1.2 +0.6 –
Víctor Arano P PHI Trade 2014 3 +1.1 +0.4 –
José Contreras P PHI Free agency 2010 3 +1.1 +0.4 2.5
Bailey Falter P PHI Draft 2015 3 +0.9 +0.3 –
Jeanmar Gómez P PHI Free agency 2015 2 +0.9 +0.4 0.1
Raúl Valdés P PHI Free agency 2011 2 +0.8 +0.4 4.0
Paul Bako C PHI Free agency 2009 1 +0.7 +0.7 3.9
J. P. Crawford SS PHI Draft 2013 2 +0.7 +0.4 –
Severino González P PHI Intl FA 2011 2 +0.7 +0.3 –
John Lannan P PHI Free agency 2012 1 +0.7 +0.7 0.2
Rafael Marchán C PHI Intl FA 2015 3 +0.7 +0.2 –
Darin Ruf 1B/OF PHI Draft 2009 3 +0.7 +0.2 –
Pedro Martínez P PHI Free agency 2009 1 +0.4 +0.4 2.3
Wil Nieves C PHI Free agency 2013 1 +0.4 +0.4 0.3
Jeremy Horst P PHI Trade 2012 1 +0.4 +0.4 3.6
Dalier Hinojosa P PHI Trade 2015 2 +0.4 +0.2 0.0
Elvis Araújo P PHI Trade 2015 1 +0.3 +0.3 –
Brian Bogusevic OF PHI Free agency 2014 1 +0.3 +0.3 0.0
David Hernandez P PHI Free agency 2015 1 +0.3 +0.3 0.0
Dane Sardinha C PHI Free agency 2010 2 +0.3 +0.2 0.8
Michael Young SS PHI Trade 2013 1 +0.3 +0.3 0.1
Humberto Quintero C PHI Trade 2013 1 +0.3 +0.3 0.1
Drew Anderson P PHI Draft 2012 2 +0.2 +0.1 –
Alec Asher P PHI Trade 2015 1 +0.2 +0.2 –
Chad Billingsley P PHI Free agency 2015 1 +0.2 +0.2 0.0
Miguel Cairo 2B PHI Free agency 2009 1 +0.2 +0.2 1.3
Ben Francisco OF PHI Trade 2009 2 +0.2 +0.1 3.1
Ross Gload 1B PHI Free agency 2009 1 +0.2 +0.2 2.5
Rodrigo López P PHI Free agency 2009 1 +0.2 +0.2 1.4
Adonis Medina P PHI Intl FA 2014 2 +0.2 +0.1 –
Cody Ransom 3B/SS PHI Free agency 2009 1 +0.2 +0.2 0.6
Wilson Valdez 2B/SS PHI Free agency 2009 1 +0.2 +0.2 1.8
Luke Williams 3B/OF PHI Draft 2015 1 +0.2 +0.2 –
Jerome Williams P PHI Trade 2014 1 +0.2 +0.2 0.3
Chase d'Arnaud 3B/SS PHI Free agency 2014 1 +0.1 +0.1 0.0
Tommy Joseph 1B PHI Trade 2012 1 +0.1 +0.1 –
Scott Kingery SS/OF PHI Draft 2015 2 +0.1 +0.0 –
Mark Leiter P PHI Draft 2013 1 +0.1 +0.1 –
Hoby Milner P PHI Draft 2012 1 +0.1 +0.1 –
Juan Pérez P PHI Free agency 2010 1 +0.1 +0.1 0.2
Jason Pridie OF PHI Free agency 2012 1 +0.1 +0.1 0.6
Mauricio Robles P PHI Trade 2012 1 +0.1 +0.1 –
Tyler Walker P PHI Free agency 2009 1 +0.1 +0.1 0.8
Andy Tracy 1B/3B PHI Trade 2009 1 +0.1 +0.1 0.7
Roberto Hernández P PHI Trade 2014 1 +0.1 +0.1 0.1
Mike Adams P PHI Free agency 2012 1 +0.0 +0.0 0.3
Cody Asche 3B/OF PHI Draft 2011 2 -0.0 -0.0 –
Kevin Correia P PHI Free agency 2015 – -0.0 – –
Mike Fontenot 2B PHI Free agency 2012 1 +0.0 +0.0 0.1
Miguel González P PHI Intl FA 2013 – -0.0 – –
Mario Hollands P PHI Draft 2010 1 +0.0 +0.0 –
Paul Hoover C PHI Free agency 2009 1 -0.0 -0.0 0.7
César Jiménez P PHI Free agency 2012 1 -0.0 -0.0 0.0
Héctor Luna 2B PHI Free agency 2011 – -0.0 – –
Jeff Manship P PHI Free agency 2013 – -0.0 – –
Nefi Ogando P PHI Trade 2013 1 +0.0 +0.0 –
Mike Sweeney 1B/DH PHI Trade 2010 1 +0.0 +0.0 0.0
Nate Schierholtz OF PHI Trade 2012 1 +0.0 +0.0 0.3
Kenny Roberts P PHI Trade 2015 1 +0.0 +0.0 0.0
Reid Brignac SS PHI Free agency 2013 – -0.1 – –
Shawn Camp P PHI Free agency 2013 – -0.1 – –
Dylan Cozens OF PHI Draft 2012 – -0.1 – –
Austin Davis P PHI Draft 2014 1 -0.1 -0.1 –
Deivy Grullón C PHI Intl FA 2012 – -0.1 – –
Brandon Moss 1B/OF PHI Free agency 2010 – -0.1 – –
Seth Rosin P PHI Trade 2012 – -0.1 – –
Brock Stassi 1B PHI Draft 2011 – -0.1 – –
Daniel Stumpf P PHI Rule 5 2015 – -0.1 – –
Ronny Cedeño SS PHI Free agency 2014 – -0.2 – –
Koyie Hill C PHI Free agency 2014 – -0.2 – –
Steven Lerud C PHI Trade 2012 – -0.2 – –
Colton Murray P PHI Draft 2011 – -0.2 – –
Pete Orr 2B/3B PHI Free agency 2010 1 -0.2 -0.2 0.7
Joely Rodríguez P PHI Trade 2014 1 -0.2 -0.2 –
Brian Schneider C PHI Free agency 2009 2 -0.2 -0.1 1.2
Mitch Walding 3B PHI Draft 2011 – -0.2 – –
Jesen Therrien P PHI Draft 2011 – -0.3 – –
David Herndon P PHI Rule 5 2009 2 -0.3 -0.2 –
Mauricio Llovera P PHI Intl FA 2014 – -0.3 – –
Adam Loewen P PHI Free agency 2014 – -0.3 – –
Zach Miner P PHI Free agency 2012 – -0.3 – –
Yacksel Ríos P PHI Draft 2011 – -0.3 – –
James Russell P PHI Free agency 2015 – -0.3 – –
Nick Williams OF PHI Trade 2015 2 -0.3 -0.1 –
Phillippe Aumont P PHI Trade 2009 2 -0.4 -0.2 –
Darnell Sweeney 2B/OF PHI Trade 2015 – -0.4 – –
Jake Thompson P PHI Trade 2015 – -0.4 – –
Emmanuel Burriss 2B PHI Free agency 2015 – -0.5 – –
Ethan Martin P PHI Trade 2012 – -0.5 – –
Laynce Nix OF PHI Free agency 2011 1 -0.5 -0.5 1.5
Jesmuel Valentín 2B/3B PHI Trade 2014 – -0.5 – –
Edgar García P PHI Intl FA 2014 – -0.6 – –
Frank Herrmann P PHI Free agency 2015 – -0.6 – –
Dustin McGowan P PHI Free agency 2015 – -0.6 – –
Ricardo Pinto P PHI Intl FA 2011 – -0.6 – –
J. C. Ramírez P PHI Trade 2009 – -0.6 – –
Danys Báez P PHI Free agency 2009 – -0.8 – –
Jeff Francoeur OF PHI Free agency 2014 – -0.8 – –
Sean O'Sullivan P PHI Free agency 2013 – -0.8 – –
Cameron Perkins OF PHI Draft 2012 – -0.8 – –
Tyler Goeddel OF PHI Rule 5 2015 – -1.0 – –
Tony Gwynn OF PHI Free agency 2013 – -1.0 – –
Andrew Knapp C PHI Draft 2013 3 -1.3 -0.4 –
Michael Martínez 2B/OF PHI Rule 5 2010 – -1.6 – –

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.