GM: Bill Lajoie (since 1984)
| Player | Age | Service | G | fWAR | Salary $M | Surplus $M |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kirk Gibson | 28 | FA-elig | 154 | 5.3 | 0.7 | +0.7 |
| Walt Terrell | 27 | arb | 34 | 4.8 | 0.2 | +1.1 |
| Lou Whitaker | 28 | FA-elig | 152 | 4.7 | 0.7 | +0.5 |
| Jack Morris | 30 | FA-elig | 35 | 4.7 | 0.9 | +0.3 |
| Darrell Evans | 38 | FA-elig | 151 | 4.2 | 1.1 | -0.0 |
| Lance Parrish | 29 | FA-elig | 140 | 4.1 | 0.8 | +0.3 |
| Chet Lemon | 30 | FA-elig | 145 | 3.7 | 0.7 | +0.3 |
| Frank Tanana↔ TEX | 31 | FA-elig | 20 | 3.3 | 0.4 | +0.5 |
| Alan Trammell | 27 | FA-elig | 149 | 3.2 | 0.5 | +0.3 |
| Dan Petry | 26 | FA-elig | 34 | 2.9 | 0.9 | -0.1 |
| Willie Hernandez | 30 | FA-elig | 74 | 1.7 | 0.7 | -0.2 |
| Tom Brookens | 31 | FA-elig | 156 | 1.6 | 0.2 | +0.2 |
| Larry Herndon | 31 | FA-elig | 137 | 1.5 | 0.7 | -0.3 |
| Randy O'Neal | 24 | – | 28 | 1.1 | – | – |
| Juan Berenguer | 30 | FA-elig | 31 | 0.9 | 0.2 | -0.0 |
| Mickey Mahler↔ WSN | 32 | – | 3 | 0.6 | – | – |
| Doug Bair↔ STL | 35 | – | 21 | 0.4 | – | – |
| Chuck Cary | 25 | – | 16 | 0.3 | – | – |
| Milt Wilcox | 35 | FA-elig | 8 | 0.2 | 0.6 | -0.5 |
| Barbaro Garbey | 28 | – | 86 | 0.2 | – | – |
| Johnny Grubb | 36 | FA-elig | 78 | 0.0 | 0.2 | -0.2 |
| Bob Stoddard | 28 | – | 8 | -0.1 | – | – |
| Jim Weaver | 25 | – | 12 | -0.1 | – | – |
| Rusty Kuntz | 30 | – | 5 | -0.1 | – | – |
| Mike Laga | 25 | – | 9 | -0.1 | – | – |
| Chris Pittaro | 23 | – | 28 | -0.2 | – | – |
| Scotti Madison | 25 | – | 6 | -0.2 | – | – |
| Nelson Simmons | 22 | – | 75 | -0.2 | – | – |
| Doug Flynn↔ WSN | 34 | FA-elig | 32 | -0.3 | 0.3 | -0.3 |
| Alejandro Sanchez | 26 | – | 71 | -0.3 | – | – |
| Bob Melvin | 23 | – | 41 | -0.3 | – | – |
| Doug Baker | 24 | – | 15 | -0.4 | – | – |
| Bill Scherrer | 27 | arb | 48 | -0.7 | 0.1 | -0.3 |
| Marty Castillo | 28 | arb | 57 | -0.7 | 0.1 | -0.3 |
| Dave Bergman | 32 | FA-elig | 69 | -0.9 | 0.3 | -0.5 |
| Aurelio Lopez | 36 | FA-elig | 51 | -1.0 | 0.6 | -0.8 |
36 players appeared (WAR is complete); salary & surplus are on record for 21 of them (58%). 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 DET |
|---|---|---|
| Max Scherzer | 2009 | 22.2 |
| Carlos Guillén | 2004 | 18.3 |
| Ian Kinsler | 2013 | 16.3 |
| Jeremy Bonderman | 2002 | 15.8 |
| Damion Easley | 1996 | 15.4 |
| Austin Jackson | 2009 | 14.8 |
| Mickey Tettleton | 1991 | 14.4 |
| Chet Lemon | 1981 | 14.2 |
| Player | Year traded | WAR elsewhere |
|---|---|---|
| John Smoltz | 1987 | 81.6 |
| Luis Gonzalez | 1998 | 33.8 |
| Chris Hoiles | 1988 | 24.8 |
| Howard Johnson | 1984 | 22.8 |
| Justin Verlander | 2017 | 19.7 |
| Rick Porcello | 2014 | 13.1 |
| Robbie Ray | 2014 | 11.8 |
| Matt Joyce | 2008 | 10.7 |