MLB standings by wins per million spent: NY lights money on fire, Cubs no excuses

Today, we look at how MLB standings would play out if they were ordered by who was using their money the wisest so far this season.

At the simplest form, building an MLB team is all about resource allocation. You can take various types of approaches. Spend big for proven talent and you should, all else equal, be able to build a winner. The Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Yankees have traditionally taken that path. The Mets, Padres, and Phillies have followed suit as of late.

Or, you can look for talented players that aren’t as obvious and make savvy moves to secure players for lengthy deals while young to keep payroll low.

In the end, wins are what matters most. But what if we organized standings based on the efficiency of spending?

Today, we’re going to see what kind of craziness would happen if we changed standings to be ordered by the wins per million spent so far this season. Data is through June 8th.

Let’s get weird.

MLB standings: Divisional standings ordered by money spent for wins

First, let’s take a look at the American League by division.

AL East

1. Baltimore Orioles — 1.5 (+1)
2. Tampa Bay Rays — 1.48 (-1)
3. Toronto Blue Jays — 1.43 (+1)
4. Boston Red Sox — 0.44 (No change)
5. New York Yankees — 0.33 (-2)

Ultimately, not a huge shock here. The Orioles have plenty of young players yet are threatening for the division lead. The Rays have won a lot but spend much more. The Yankees spend lavishly and don’t win as much as they should.

AL Central

1. Cleveland Guardians — 0.84 (+1)
2. Detroit Tigers — 0.56 (+2)
3. Minnesota Twins — 0.52 (-2)
4. Kansas City Royals — 0.50 (+1)
5. Chicago White Sox — 0.39 (-1)

The Guardians don’t look nearly as bad here as they do in real life. Ditto for the Tigers. The White Sox are an ugly, ugly team with no direction.

AL West

1. Oakland Athletics — 0.59 (+4)
2. Seattle Mariners — 0.57 (+3)
3. Texas Rangers — 0.54 (-2)
4. Houston Astros — 0.49 (-2)
5. Los Angeles Angels — 0.4 (-2)

The Oakland A’s are good?!

No, they just don’t spend any money. Even a few wins balloon this stat because they have the lowest payroll.

NL East

1. Miami Marlins — 0.93 (+1)
2. Washington Nationals — 0.71 (+3)
3. Atlanta Braves — 0.49 (-2)
4. New York Mets — 0.33 (No change)
5. Philadelphia Phillies — 0.32 (-2)

The Marlins are scary for the future if this holds.

Shockingly, the Mets aren’t last despite having the highest payroll and sitting at 30-33 after being swept by the Braves this week.

NL Central

1. Pittsburgh Pirates — 1.13 (+1)
2. Cincinnati Reds — 0.81 (+2)
3. Milwaukee Brewers — 0.71 (-2)
4. St. Louis Cardinals — 0.41 (+1)
5. Chicago Cubs — 0.37 (-1)

Woah, Pirates! Woah, Reds!

This division is kind of a mess. One takeaway: It shows how bad the Cubs’ attempt to get competitive has been. The Cardinals spend little and win little.

NL West

1. Arizona Diamondbacks — 0.84 (No change)
2. San Francisco Giants — 0.45 (+1)
3. Los Angeles Dodgers — 0.41 (-1)
4. Colorado Rockies — 0.37 (+1)
5. San Diego Padres — 0.31 (-1)

The Diamondbacks are a lot like the Marlins.

Padres are Mets West.

MLB standings: League standings ordered by average attendance

American League

1. Baltimore Orioles — 1.5
2. Tampa Bay Rays — 1.48
3. Cleveland Guardians — 0.84
4. Oakland Athletics — 0.59
5. Seattle Mariners — 0.57
6. Detroit Tigers — 0.56
7. Texas Rangers — 0.54
8. Minnesota Twins — 0.52
9. Kansas City Royals — 0.50
10. Houston Astros — 0.49
11. Boston Red Sox — 0.44
12. Toronto Blue Jays — 0.43
13. Los Angeles Angels — 0.4
14. Chicago White Sox — 0.39
15. New York Yankees — 0.33

The Orioles are super impressive here because they spend just $7 million more than the Athletics yet actually win games. The Rays look even more impressive for holding a top spot.

the White Sox and Angels should not be allowed to manage anyone’s pension fund.

National League

1. Pittsburgh Pirates — 1.13
2. Miami Marlins — 0.93
3. Arizona Diamondbacks — 0.84
4. Cincinnati Reds — 0.81
5. Milwaukee Brewers — 0.71
6. Washington Nationals — 0.71
7. Atlanta Braves — 0.49
8. San Francisco Giants — 0.45
9. St. Louis Cardinals — 0.41
10. Los Angeles Dodgers — 0.41
11. Chicago Cubs — 0.37
12. Colorado Rockies — 0.37
13. New York Mets — 0.33
14. Philadelphia Phillies — 0.32
15. San Diego Padres — 0.31

Pirates and Marlins are kinda deadly! Same for the Diamondbacks.

The National League version of this tilts much more toward rebuilding or developing teams. The Braves look good for how they use their money, and most of the other winners find themselves on the bottom of this metric.