GM: Jerry Walker (since 1992)
| Player | Age | Service | G | fWAR | Salary $M | Surplus $M |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mickey Tettleton | 31 | FA-elig | 157 | 5.0 | 3.3 | +0.5 |
| Tony Phillips | 33 | FA-elig | 159 | 4.6 | 1.6 | +2.0 |
| Lou Whitaker | 35 | FA-elig | 130 | 4.4 | 2.2 | +1.3 |
| Travis Fryman | 23 | pre-arb | 161 | 4.1 | 0.3 | +2.9 |
| Rob Deer | 31 | FA-elig | 110 | 3.7 | 2.0 | +0.9 |
| Cecil Fielder | 28 | FA-elig | 155 | 2.5 | 4.5 | -2.5 |
| John Doherty | 25 | pre-arb | 47 | 1.9 | 0.1 | +1.4 |
| Mark Leiter | 29 | pre-arb | 35 | 1.5 | 0.2 | +0.9 |
| Scott Livingstone | 26 | pre-arb | 117 | 1.4 | 0.1 | +1.0 |
| Gary Pettis↔ SDP | 34 | – | 48 | 1.3 | – | – |
| Mike Henneman | 30 | arb | 60 | 1.2 | 2.4 | -1.5 |
| Chad Kreuter | 27 | arb | 67 | 0.9 | 0.2 | +0.5 |
| Alan Trammell | 34 | FA-elig | 29 | 0.9 | 2.4 | -1.7 |
| Kevin Ritz | 27 | arb | 23 | 0.8 | 0.1 | +0.5 |
| Phil Clark | 24 | – | 23 | 0.7 | – | – |
| Dan Gladden | 34 | FA-elig | 113 | 0.6 | 1.1 | -0.5 |
| Walt Terrell | 34 | FA-elig | 36 | 0.6 | 0.1 | +0.4 |
| Bill Gullickson | 33 | FA-elig | 34 | 0.6 | 1.9 | -1.5 |
| Frank Tanana | 38 | FA-elig | 32 | 0.5 | 1.7 | -1.3 |
| Dave Haas | 26 | – | 12 | 0.5 | – | – |
| Skeeter Barnes | 35 | FA-elig | 95 | 0.3 | 0.1 | +0.1 |
| Eric King | 28 | FA-elig | 17 | 0.3 | 1.2 | -1.0 |
| John Kiely | 27 | pre-arb | 39 | 0.1 | 0.1 | -0.0 |
| Mike Munoz | 26 | arb | 65 | 0.0 | 0.1 | -0.1 |
| Buddy Groom | 26 | – | 12 | 0.0 | – | – |
| Rich Rowland | 28 | pre-arb | 6 | -0.1 | 0.1 | -0.2 |
| Rico Brogna | 22 | – | 9 | -0.2 | – | – |
| Shawn Hare | 25 | – | 15 | -0.4 | – | – |
| Scott Aldred | 24 | pre-arb | 16 | -0.4 | 0.1 | -0.5 |
| Kurt Knudsen | 25 | – | 48 | -0.5 | – | – |
| Milt Cuyler | 23 | pre-arb | 89 | -0.5 | 0.2 | -0.6 |
| Dave Bergman | 39 | FA-elig | 87 | -0.6 | 0.4 | -0.9 |
| Les Lancaster | 30 | – | 41 | -1.1 | – | – |
| Mark Carreon | 28 | arb | 101 | -1.2 | 0.4 | -1.3 |
34 players appeared (WAR is complete); salary & surplus are on record for 26 of them (76%). 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 |