GM: Terry Ryan (since 1993)
| Player | Age | Service | G | fWAR | Salary $M | Surplus $M |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kevin Tapani | 29 | arb | 36 | 4.3 | 2.0 | +1.5 |
| Scott Erickson | 25 | arb | 34 | 3.3 | 0.5 | +2.2 |
| Chuck Knoblauch | 24 | pre-arb | 153 | 2.6 | 0.5 | +1.7 |
| Willie Banks | 24 | pre-arb | 31 | 2.6 | 0.1 | +2.0 |
| Kent Hrbek | 33 | FA-elig | 123 | 2.3 | 3.1 | -1.2 |
| Brian Harper | 33 | FA-elig | 147 | 2.3 | 2.4 | -0.5 |
| Jeff Reboulet | 29 | pre-arb | 109 | 1.6 | 0.1 | +1.2 |
| Carl Willis | 32 | FA-elig | 53 | 1.5 | 0.5 | +0.7 |
| Chip Hale | 28 | arb | 69 | 1.4 | 0.1 | +1.0 |
| Shane Mack | 29 | FA-elig | 128 | 1.4 | 3.0 | -1.9 |
| Larry Casian | 27 | arb | 54 | 1.2 | 0.1 | +0.9 |
| Mike Pagliarulo↔ BAL | 33 | FA-elig | 83 | 1.1 | 0.3 | +0.6 |
| Jim Deshaies↔ SFG | 33 | FA-elig | 27 | 1.0 | 0.6 | +0.2 |
| Rick Aguilera | 31 | FA-elig | 65 | 1.0 | 2.4 | -1.6 |
| Mike Trombley | 26 | pre-arb | 44 | 0.7 | 0.1 | +0.5 |
| Mike Hartley | 31 | arb | 53 | 0.6 | 0.6 | -0.1 |
| Eddie Guardado | 22 | pre-arb | 19 | 0.5 | 0.1 | +0.3 |
| Kirby Puckett | 33 | FA-elig | 156 | 0.3 | 5.3 | -5.1 |
| Dave Winfield | 41 | FA-elig | 143 | 0.3 | 2.7 | -2.5 |
| Terry Jorgensen | 26 | arb | 59 | 0.1 | 0.1 | -0.0 |
| Rich Garces | 22 | arb | 3 | 0.0 | 0.1 | -0.1 |
| Bernardo Brito | 29 | – | 27 | 0.0 | – | – |
| Greg Brummett↔ SFG | 26 | pre-arb | 5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | -0.0 |
| Rich Becker | 21 | pre-arb | 3 | -0.0 | 0.1 | -0.1 |
| Mike Maksudian | 27 | pre-arb | 5 | -0.0 | 0.1 | -0.1 |
| J.T. Bruett | 25 | pre-arb | 17 | -0.1 | 0.1 | -0.2 |
| Gene Larkin | 30 | FA-elig | 56 | -0.1 | 0.6 | -0.7 |
| Mark Guthrie | 27 | arb | 22 | -0.2 | 0.7 | -0.9 |
| Lenny Webster | 28 | arb | 49 | -0.2 | 0.2 | -0.3 |
| Derek Parks | 24 | – | 7 | -0.2 | – | – |
| Scott Leius | 27 | arb | 10 | -0.3 | 0.3 | -0.5 |
| Scott Stahoviak | 23 | pre-arb | 20 | -0.3 | 0.1 | -0.4 |
| Pat Mahomes | 22 | pre-arb | 12 | -0.3 | 0.1 | -0.4 |
| Randy Bush | 34 | FA-elig | 35 | -0.4 | 0.2 | -0.5 |
| Denny Hocking | 23 | – | 15 | -0.4 | – | – |
| George Tsamis | 26 | – | 41 | -0.4 | – | – |
| Pat Meares | 24 | pre-arb | 111 | -0.5 | 0.1 | -0.5 |
| Brett Merriman | 26 | – | 19 | -0.5 | – | – |
| Derek Lee | 26 | – | 15 | -0.5 | – | – |
| Pedro Munoz | 24 | arb | 104 | -1.9 | 0.3 | -1.8 |
| Dave McCarty | 23 | – | 98 | -3.1 | – | – |
41 players appeared (WAR is complete); salary & surplus are on record for 34 of them (83%). 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 MIN |
|---|---|---|
| Johan Santana | 1999 | 32.0 |
| Greg Gagne | 1982 | 15.6 |
| Joe Nathan | 2003 | 14.1 |
| Eric Milton | 1998 | 13.4 |
| Joe Ryan | 2021 | 13.4 |
| Francisco Liriano | 2003 | 12.5 |
| Pablo López | 2023 | 9.6 |
| Bert Blyleven | 1985 | 8.3 |
| Player | Year traded | WAR elsewhere |
|---|---|---|
| Scott Erickson | 1995 | 16.4 |
| J. J. Hardy | 2010 | 14.3 |
| Johan Santana | 2008 | 14.3 |
| Wilson Ramos | 2010 | 11.5 |
| Mark Portugal | 1988 | 9.2 |
| Denard Span | 2012 | 9.0 |
| Bert Blyleven | 1988 | 8.4 |
| Jason Bartlett | 2007 | 8.4 |