GM: Ed Lynch (since 1995)
| Player | Age | Service | G | fWAR | Salary $M | Surplus $M |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sammy Sosa | 30 | FA-elig | 162 | 5.3 | 9.0 | -2.3 |
| Jon Lieber | 29 | arb | 31 | 4.4 | 2.1 | +3.4 |
| Mark Grace | 35 | FA-elig | 161 | 3.3 | 4.1 | +0.1 |
| Henry Rodriguez | 31 | FA-elig | 130 | 3.0 | 3.7 | +0.1 |
| Kevin Tapani | 35 | FA-elig | 23 | 2.3 | 3.5 | -0.6 |
| Steve Trachsel | 28 | FA-elig | 34 | 2.2 | 5.2 | -2.5 |
| José Hernández↔ ATL | 29 | FA-elig | 99 | 1.7 | 1.6 | +0.5 |
| Glenallen Hill | 34 | FA-elig | 99 | 1.3 | 1.1 | +0.5 |
| Lance Johnson | 35 | FA-elig | 95 | 0.8 | 5.1 | -4.1 |
| Jeff Reed↔ COL | 36 | FA-elig | 57 | 0.7 | 0.7 | +0.2 |
| Benito Santiago | 34 | FA-elig | 109 | 0.7 | 1.7 | -0.8 |
| Andrew Lorraine | 26 | arb | 12 | 0.7 | 0.2 | +0.6 |
| Jeff Blauser | 33 | FA-elig | 104 | 0.6 | 4.2 | -3.4 |
| Shane Andrews↔ WSN | 27 | arb | 19 | 0.5 | 0.2 | +0.4 |
| Terry Mulholland↔ ATL | 36 | FA-elig | 26 | 0.4 | 1.8 | -1.3 |
| Rick Aguilera↔ MIN | 37 | FA-elig | 44 | 0.4 | 3.1 | -2.6 |
| Felix Heredia | 24 | arb | 69 | 0.4 | 0.3 | +0.2 |
| Terry Adams | 26 | arb | 52 | 0.3 | 0.7 | -0.3 |
| Mark Guthrie↔ BOS | 33 | FA-elig | 11 | 0.2 | 0.3 | -0.1 |
| Micah Bowie↔ ATL | 24 | pre-arb | 11 | 0.1 | 0.2 | +0.0 |
| Steve Rain | 24 | – | 16 | 0.1 | – | – |
| Scott Sanders | 30 | FA-elig | 67 | 0.0 | 0.8 | -0.8 |
| Richard Barker | 26 | – | 5 | 0.0 | – | – |
| Rodney Myers | 30 | arb | 46 | 0.0 | 0.2 | -0.2 |
| Manny Alexander | 28 | FA-elig | 90 | -0.0 | 0.5 | -0.5 |
| José Molina | 24 | pre-arb | 10 | -0.0 | 0.2 | -0.2 |
| Robin Jennings | 27 | arb | 5 | -0.1 | 0.2 | -0.3 |
| Doug Creek | 30 | – | 3 | -0.1 | – | – |
| Kurt Miller | 26 | arb | 4 | -0.1 | 0.2 | -0.4 |
| Brad Woodall | 30 | arb | 6 | -0.2 | 0.2 | -0.4 |
| Bobby Ayala↔ WSN | 29 | – | 13 | -0.2 | – | – |
| Matt Karchner | 32 | arb | 16 | -0.2 | 0.8 | -1.0 |
| Brian McNichol | 25 | – | 4 | -0.2 | – | – |
| Curtis Goodwin↔ TOR | 26 | arb | 89 | -0.3 | 0.3 | -0.6 |
| Rod Beck↔ BOS | 30 | FA-elig | 31 | -0.3 | 4.0 | -4.3 |
| Bo Porter | 26 | – | 24 | -0.3 | – | – |
| Ray King | 25 | – | 10 | -0.3 | – | – |
| Roosevelt Brown | 23 | – | 33 | -0.4 | – | – |
| Sandy Martinez | 28 | arb | 17 | -0.5 | 0.2 | -0.8 |
| Dan Serafini | 25 | arb | 42 | -0.5 | 0.2 | -0.8 |
| Tyler Houston↔ CLE | 28 | arb | 100 | -0.5 | 0.6 | -1.3 |
| Kyle Farnsworth | 23 | pre-arb | 27 | -0.5 | 0.2 | -0.9 |
| Cole Liniak | 22 | – | 12 | -0.7 | – | – |
| Jose Nieves | 24 | pre-arb | 54 | -0.7 | 0.2 | -1.1 |
| Chad Meyers | 23 | pre-arb | 43 | -1.0 | 0.2 | -1.4 |
| Gary Gaetti | 40 | FA-elig | 113 | -1.3 | 2.0 | -3.6 |
| Mickey Morandini | 33 | FA-elig | 144 | -1.3 | 2.0 | -3.6 |
47 players appeared (WAR is complete); salary & surplus are on record for 38 of them (81%). Players without a salary show "–" — no single historical salary source is fully complete (especially 2020–2022).
WAR = FanGraphs (fWAR). Green = produced more value than paid (bargain); red = paid more than produced. Service: pre-arb (<3 yr) / arb (3–6) / FA-eligible (6+). Click headers to sort.
| Player | Year | WAR for CHC |
|---|---|---|
| Sammy Sosa | 1992 | 60.7 |
| Ryne Sandberg | 1982 | 48.2 |
| Anthony Rizzo | 2012 | 31.1 |
| Aramis Ramírez | 2003 | 25.0 |
| Kyle Hendricks | 2012 | 24.4 |
| Derrek Lee | 2003 | 21.4 |
| Jake Arrieta | 2013 | 19.6 |
| Rick Sutcliffe | 1984 | 17.2 |
| Player | Year traded | WAR elsewhere |
|---|---|---|
| Rafael Palmeiro | 1988 | 42.3 |
| Dontrelle Willis | 2002 | 20.7 |
| Dennis Eckersley | 1987 | 19.3 |
| Ricky Nolasco | 2005 | 17.5 |
| Jon Garland | 1998 | 17.2 |
| Chris Archer | 2011 | 16.9 |
| Gleyber Torres | 2016 | 15.9 |
| Josh Donaldson | 2008 | 13.8 |