GM: Bill Lajoie (since 1984)
| Player | Age | Service | G | fWAR | Salary $M | Surplus $M |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alan Trammell | 28 | FA-elig | 151 | 5.7 | 0.6 | +1.1 |
| Lou Whitaker | 29 | FA-elig | 144 | 4.5 | 0.7 | +0.7 |
| Jack Morris | 31 | FA-elig | 35 | 4.0 | 0.9 | +0.3 |
| Darrell Evans | 39 | FA-elig | 151 | 3.8 | 0.8 | +0.3 |
| Kirk Gibson | 29 | FA-elig | 119 | 3.6 | 1.2 | -0.1 |
| Lance Parrish | 30 | FA-elig | 91 | 3.4 | 0.8 | +0.1 |
| Chet Lemon | 31 | FA-elig | 126 | 3.0 | 0.7 | +0.2 |
| Darnell Coles | 24 | arb | 142 | 2.6 | 0.1 | +0.7 |
| Johnny Grubb | 37 | FA-elig | 81 | 2.6 | 0.2 | +0.5 |
| Frank Tanana | 32 | FA-elig | 32 | 2.3 | 0.7 | +0.0 |
| Eric King | 22 | pre-arb | 33 | 1.5 | 0.1 | +0.4 |
| Dave Collins | 33 | FA-elig | 124 | 1.4 | 0.7 | -0.3 |
| Dwight Lowry | 28 | pre-arb | 56 | 1.4 | 0.1 | +0.4 |
| Larry Herndon | 32 | FA-elig | 106 | 1.0 | 0.7 | -0.4 |
| Randy O'Neal | 25 | pre-arb | 37 | 0.9 | 0.1 | +0.2 |
| Willie Hernandez | 31 | FA-elig | 64 | 0.8 | 1.0 | -0.7 |
| Walt Terrell | 28 | arb | 34 | 0.6 | 0.3 | -0.1 |
| Dan Petry | 27 | FA-elig | 20 | 0.4 | 0.9 | -0.7 |
| Bill Campbell | 37 | FA-elig | 34 | 0.4 | 0.2 | -0.1 |
| Mike Heath↔ STL | 31 | FA-elig | 30 | 0.3 | 0.2 | -0.1 |
| Pat Sheridan | 28 | arb | 98 | 0.2 | 0.1 | -0.1 |
| Matt Nokes | 22 | – | 7 | 0.2 | – | – |
| Mike Laga↔ STL | 26 | arb | 15 | 0.1 | 0.0 | -0.0 |
| Harry Spilman↔ SFG | 31 | FA-elig | 24 | 0.1 | 0.0 | +0.0 |
| Chuck Cary | 26 | – | 22 | 0.1 | – | – |
| Tom Brookens | 32 | FA-elig | 98 | 0.1 | 0.3 | -0.3 |
| Jack Lazorko | 30 | – | 3 | 0.0 | – | – |
| Bryan Kelly | 27 | – | 6 | 0.0 | – | – |
| Dave Engle | 29 | – | 35 | 0.0 | – | – |
| Mark Thurmond↔ SDP | 29 | arb | 25 | 0.0 | 0.2 | -0.2 |
| Dave Bergman | 33 | FA-elig | 65 | 0.0 | 0.3 | -0.3 |
| Bruce Fields | 25 | – | 16 | -0.1 | – | – |
| Jim Slaton↔ ANA | 36 | FA-elig | 22 | -0.1 | 0.2 | -0.3 |
| Dave LaPoint↔ SDP | 26 | FA-elig | 16 | -0.1 | 0.2 | -0.3 |
| John Pacella | 29 | – | 5 | -0.2 | – | – |
| Tim Tolman | 30 | – | 16 | -0.2 | – | – |
| Scotti Madison | 26 | – | 2 | -0.3 | – | – |
| Doug Baker | 25 | – | 13 | -0.3 | – | – |
| Brian Harper | 26 | – | 19 | -0.4 | – | – |
| Bill Scherrer | 28 | – | 13 | -0.4 | – | – |
40 players appeared (WAR is complete); salary & surplus are on record for 28 of them (70%). 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 |