GM: Dave Dombrowski (since 2003)
| Player | Age | Service | G | fWAR | Salary $M | Surplus $M |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Placido Polanco↔ PHI | 29 | FA-elig | 86 | 3.5 | 3.1 | +3.6 |
| Brandon Inge | 28 | arb | 160 | 3.2 | 1.4 | +4.7 |
| Ivan Rodriguez | 33 | FA-elig | 129 | 3.2 | 8.0 | -2.0 |
| Jeremy Bonderman | 22 | pre-arb | 29 | 3.1 | 0.4 | +5.4 |
| Jason Johnson | 31 | FA-elig | 33 | 2.7 | 4.0 | +1.1 |
| Chris Shelton | 25 | – | 107 | 2.5 | – | – |
| Mike Maroth | 27 | arb | 35 | 2.1 | 0.4 | +3.6 |
| Carlos Guillén | 29 | FA-elig | 87 | 2.0 | 4.0 | -0.3 |
| Rondell White | 33 | FA-elig | 97 | 1.7 | 3.2 | -0.1 |
| Nook Logan | 25 | pre-arb | 129 | 1.6 | 0.3 | +2.6 |
| Dmitri Young | 31 | FA-elig | 126 | 1.5 | 8.0 | -5.3 |
| Craig Monroe | 28 | arb | 157 | 1.4 | 0.4 | +2.3 |
| Nate Robertson | 27 | arb | 32 | 1.3 | 0.4 | +2.2 |
| Magglio Ordonez | 31 | FA-elig | 82 | 1.2 | 7.2 | -4.9 |
| Kyle Farnsworth↔ ATL | 29 | FA-elig | 46 | 1.2 | 1.3 | +1.1 |
| Curtis Granderson | 24 | – | 47 | 1.1 | – | – |
| Fernando Rodney | 28 | arb | 39 | 0.4 | 0.3 | +0.4 |
| Sean Douglass | 26 | – | 18 | 0.3 | – | – |
| Carlos Pena | 27 | arb | 79 | 0.3 | 2.6 | -2.1 |
| Jamie Walker | 33 | FA-elig | 66 | 0.3 | 0.9 | -0.4 |
| Jason Grilli | 28 | – | 3 | 0.2 | – | – |
| Vic Darensbourg | 34 | – | 22 | 0.1 | – | – |
| Ugueth Urbina↔ PHI | 31 | FA-elig | 25 | 0.1 | 1.2 | -1.0 |
| Justin Verlander | 22 | – | 2 | 0.1 | – | – |
| John McDonald↔ TOR | 30 | FA-elig | 31 | 0.1 | 0.2 | +0.0 |
| Omar Infante | 23 | arb | 121 | 0.0 | 0.4 | -0.3 |
| Craig Dingman | 31 | – | 34 | 0.0 | – | – |
| Andrew Good | 25 | – | 2 | 0.0 | – | – |
| Jason Karnuth | 29 | – | 3 | 0.0 | – | – |
| Mark Woodyard | 26 | – | 3 | 0.0 | – | – |
| Kevin Hooper | 28 | – | 6 | -0.1 | – | – |
| Matt Ginter | 27 | arb | 14 | -0.1 | 0.3 | -0.6 |
| Jason Smith | 27 | arb | 27 | -0.1 | 0.3 | -0.6 |
| Vance Wilson | 32 | FA-elig | 61 | -0.1 | 0.8 | -1.0 |
| Wilfredo Ledezma | 24 | pre-arb | 10 | -0.2 | 0.3 | -0.7 |
| Chris Spurling | 28 | – | 56 | -0.2 | – | – |
| Alexis Gomez | 26 | – | 9 | -0.3 | – | – |
| Roman Colon↔ ATL | 25 | pre-arb | 12 | -0.3 | 0.1 | -0.8 |
| Doug Creek | 36 | – | 20 | -0.4 | – | – |
| Tony Giarratano | 22 | – | 15 | -0.4 | – | – |
| Franklyn German | 25 | arb | 58 | -0.4 | 0.3 | -1.1 |
| Ramon Martinez↔ PHI | 32 | FA-elig | 19 | -0.5 | 0.4 | -1.2 |
| Bobby Higginson | 34 | FA-elig | 10 | -0.6 | 8.8 | -9.9 |
| Troy Percival | 35 | FA-elig | 26 | -0.6 | 6.0 | -7.1 |
| Marcus Thames | 28 | – | 38 | -0.6 | – | – |
45 players appeared (WAR is complete); salary & surplus are on record for 29 of them (64%). 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 |