GM: Hank Peters (since 1988)
| Player | Age | Service | G | fWAR | Salary $M | Surplus $M |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tom Candiotti | 32 | FA-elig | 31 | 4.4 | 0.5 | +1.1 |
| Jerry Browne | 23 | arb | 153 | 3.8 | 0.1 | +1.2 |
| Bud Black | 32 | FA-elig | 33 | 3.4 | 0.6 | +0.6 |
| Brook Jacoby | 29 | FA-elig | 147 | 3.4 | 1.0 | +0.2 |
| Greg Swindell | 24 | arb | 28 | 3.3 | 0.3 | +0.9 |
| John Farrell | 26 | pre-arb | 31 | 3.2 | 0.2 | +1.0 |
| Doug Jones | 32 | FA-elig | 59 | 2.6 | 0.3 | +0.6 |
| Joe Carter | 29 | FA-elig | 162 | 1.8 | 1.6 | -1.0 |
| Pete O'Brien | 31 | FA-elig | 155 | 1.5 | 0.7 | -0.2 |
| Felix Fermin | 25 | pre-arb | 156 | 1.3 | 0.1 | +0.4 |
| Scott Bailes | 27 | arb | 34 | 1.2 | 0.3 | +0.1 |
| Brad Komminsk | 28 | FA-elig | 71 | 1.2 | 0.1 | +0.3 |
| Jesse Orosco | 32 | FA-elig | 69 | 1.1 | 0.8 | -0.4 |
| Dion James↔ ATL | 26 | FA-elig | 71 | 0.9 | 0.2 | +0.1 |
| Steve Olin | 23 | pre-arb | 25 | 0.5 | 0.1 | +0.1 |
| Ed Wojna | 28 | arb | 9 | 0.3 | 0.1 | +0.0 |
| Rod Nichols | 24 | pre-arb | 15 | 0.3 | 0.1 | +0.0 |
| Beau Allred | 24 | – | 13 | 0.2 | – | – |
| Andy Allanson | 27 | arb | 111 | 0.2 | 0.2 | -0.2 |
| Tim Stoddard | 36 | FA-elig | 14 | 0.1 | 0.1 | -0.1 |
| Paul Zuvella | 30 | – | 24 | 0.1 | – | – |
| Albert Belle | 22 | pre-arb | 62 | 0.1 | 0.1 | -0.0 |
| Rudy Seanez | 20 | – | 5 | 0.1 | – | – |
| Pat Keedy | 31 | – | 9 | 0.0 | – | – |
| Joe Skalski | 24 | – | 2 | 0.0 | – | – |
| Denny Gonzalez | 25 | – | 8 | -0.0 | – | – |
| Kevin Wickander | 24 | – | 2 | -0.0 | – | – |
| Steve Davis | 28 | – | 12 | -0.1 | – | – |
| Pete Dalena | 29 | – | 5 | -0.1 | – | – |
| Joel Skinner | 28 | FA-elig | 79 | -0.1 | 0.2 | -0.2 |
| Neil Allen | 31 | FA-elig | 3 | -0.1 | 0.3 | -0.4 |
| Mark Higgins | 25 | – | 6 | -0.1 | – | – |
| Mark Salas | 28 | – | 30 | -0.1 | – | – |
| Rich Yett | 26 | arb | 32 | -0.2 | 0.2 | -0.2 |
| Luis Aguayo | 30 | FA-elig | 47 | -0.2 | 0.3 | -0.3 |
| Danny Sheaffer | 27 | – | 7 | -0.2 | – | – |
| Brad Havens↔ DET | 29 | FA-elig | 7 | -0.3 | 0.1 | -0.2 |
| Cory Snyder | 26 | arb | 132 | -0.3 | 0.3 | -0.4 |
| Tom Magrann | 25 | – | 9 | -0.3 | – | – |
| Jeff Kaiser | 28 | – | 6 | -0.3 | – | – |
| Luis Medina | 26 | – | 30 | -0.4 | – | – |
| Dave Clark | 26 | arb | 102 | -0.5 | 0.1 | -0.3 |
| Mike Young | 29 | FA-elig | 32 | -0.5 | 0.1 | -0.3 |
| Tommy Hinzo | 25 | pre-arb | 18 | -0.5 | 0.1 | -0.3 |
| Dave Hengel | 27 | – | 12 | -0.5 | – | – |
| Keith Atherton | 30 | FA-elig | 32 | -0.6 | 0.5 | -0.7 |
| Oddibe McDowell↔ ATL | 26 | arb | 69 | -0.8 | 0.2 | -0.5 |
47 players appeared (WAR is complete); salary & surplus are on record for 31 of them (66%). 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 CLE |
|---|---|---|
| Kenny Lofton | 1991 | 42.5 |
| Corey Kluber | 2010 | 34.6 |
| Grady Sizemore | 2002 | 30.3 |
| Carlos Carrasco | 2009 | 25.5 |
| Travis Hafner | 2002 | 22.3 |
| Carlos Santana | 2008 | 21.6 |
| Michael Brantley | 2008 | 20.0 |
| Shin-Soo Choo | 2006 | 19.2 |
| Player | Year traded | WAR elsewhere |
|---|---|---|
| Jeff Kent | 1996 | 30.9 |
| Brandon Phillips | 2006 | 30.1 |
| Brian Giles | 1998 | 25.4 |
| Von Hayes | 1982 | 22.3 |
| Yandy Díaz | 2018 | 19.5 |
| Rick Sutcliffe | 1984 | 17.2 |
| Jeromy Burnitz | 1996 | 17.1 |
| Sean Casey | 1998 | 15.9 |