GM: John Mozeliak (since 2008)
| Player | Age | Service | G | fWAR | Salary $M | Surplus $M |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Albert Pujols | 30 | FA-elig | 159 | 6.8 | 14.6 | +1.1 |
| Matt Holliday | 30 | FA-elig | 158 | 6.2 | 16.3 | -2.0 |
| Adam Wainwright | 28 | arb | 37 | 5.5 | 4.8 | +7.8 |
| Yadier Molina | 27 | FA-elig | 136 | 4.4 | 4.3 | +5.8 |
| Colby Rasmus | 23 | pre-arb | 144 | 4.0 | 0.4 | +8.8 |
| Chris Carpenter | 35 | FA-elig | 35 | 2.6 | 15.8 | -9.8 |
| Jaime García | 23 | pre-arb | 31 | 2.5 | 0.4 | +5.4 |
| Ryan Ludwick↔ SDP | 31 | FA-elig | 77 | 2.0 | 3.1 | +1.5 |
| Brendan Ryan | 28 | arb | 139 | 1.2 | 0.4 | +2.3 |
| David Freese | 27 | pre-arb | 70 | 1.1 | 0.4 | +2.2 |
| Jon Jay | 25 | – | 105 | 1.1 | – | – |
| Jake Westbrook↔ CLE | 32 | FA-elig | 12 | 1.0 | 4.0 | -1.6 |
| Brad Penny | 32 | FA-elig | 9 | 1.0 | 7.5 | -5.2 |
| Jason Motte | 28 | pre-arb | 56 | 0.4 | 0.4 | +0.6 |
| Daniel Descalso | 23 | – | 11 | 0.4 | – | – |
| Matt Pagnozzi | 27 | – | 15 | 0.3 | – | – |
| Kyle Lohse | 31 | FA-elig | 21 | 0.3 | 9.2 | -8.6 |
| Tyler Greene | 26 | – | 44 | 0.2 | – | – |
| Ryan Franklin | 37 | FA-elig | 59 | 0.1 | 3.0 | -2.7 |
| Jeff Suppan↔ MIL | 35 | FA-elig | 15 | 0.1 | 6.4 | -6.1 |
| Steven Hill | 25 | – | 1 | 0.1 | – | – |
| Trever Miller | 37 | FA-elig | 57 | 0.1 | 2.0 | -1.8 |
| Aaron Miles | 33 | – | 79 | 0.1 | – | – |
| Jason LaRue | 36 | FA-elig | 29 | 0.0 | 0.9 | -0.9 |
| Mark Hamilton | 25 | – | 9 | -0.0 | – | – |
| Fernando Salas | 25 | – | 27 | -0.0 | – | – |
| Mitchell Boggs | 26 | pre-arb | 61 | -0.1 | 0.4 | -0.5 |
| Mike MacDougal | 33 | – | 17 | -0.1 | – | – |
| P.J. Walters | 25 | – | 7 | -0.1 | – | – |
| Allen Craig | 25 | pre-arb | 44 | -0.1 | 0.4 | -0.6 |
| Bryan Anderson | 23 | – | 15 | -0.1 | – | – |
| Felipe Lopez↔ BOS | 30 | FA-elig | 109 | -0.2 | 1.0 | -1.3 |
| Kyle McClellan | 26 | pre-arb | 68 | -0.2 | 0.4 | -0.8 |
| Evan MacLane | 27 | – | 2 | -0.2 | – | – |
| Dennys Reyes | 33 | FA-elig | 59 | -0.2 | 2.0 | -2.6 |
| Adam Ottavino | 24 | – | 6 | -0.4 | – | – |
| Nick Stavinoha | 28 | pre-arb | 79 | -0.4 | 0.4 | -1.4 |
| Randy Winn↔ NYY | 36 | FA-elig | 87 | -0.5 | 0.8 | -1.9 |
| Pedro Feliz↔ HOU | 35 | FA-elig | 40 | -0.5 | 1.3 | -2.6 |
| Skip Schumaker | 30 | arb | 137 | -0.6 | 2.0 | -3.4 |
| Joe Mather | 27 | pre-arb | 36 | -0.8 | 0.4 | -2.3 |
| Blake Hawksworth | 27 | pre-arb | 45 | -1.0 | 0.4 | -2.8 |
42 players appeared (WAR is complete); salary & surplus are on record for 29 of them (69%). 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 STL |
|---|---|---|
| Adam Wainwright | 2003 | 52.6 |
| Ozzie Smith | 1981 | 48.0 |
| Paul Goldschmidt | 2018 | 21.3 |
| Mark McGwire | 1997 | 19.7 |
| Nolan Arenado | 2021 | 18.3 |
| Édgar Rentería | 1998 | 17.4 |
| Carlos Martínez | 2013 | 16.0 |
| José Oquendo | 1985 | 15.3 |
| Player | Year traded | WAR elsewhere |
|---|---|---|
| Andy Van Slyke | 1987 | 31.1 |
| Lance Johnson | 1988 | 17.3 |
| Keith Hernandez | 1983 | 16.5 |
| David Peralta | 2014 | 14.5 |
| Mike LaValliere | 1987 | 12.9 |
| Jack Wilson | 2000 | 11.0 |
| Marco Gonzales | 2017 | 10.1 |
| Coco Crisp | 2002 | 9.9 |