It's that time of year again! Yes, I know, I'm beating a dead horse here. And yes, I understand there's no convincing baseball fans of...well...anything involving changes to their sacred sport. Still, when I first made the argument two years ago that money clearly matters, I've tried to make it a point to pay attention going forward. But let's back track a little.
Here are the list of the past 22 World Series winners, and their respective payroll ranking.
2013 - Boston Red Sox: $159 million (4th highest)
2012 - San Francisco Giants: $138 million (6th highest)
2011 - St. Louis Cardinals: $105 million (11th highest)
2010 - San Francisco Giants: $97 million (10th highest)
2009 - New York Yankees: $201 million (1st)
2008 - Philadelphia Phillies: $98 million (13th)
2007 - Boston Red Sox: $143 million (2nd)
2006 - St. Louis Cardinals: $88 million (11th)
2005 - Chicago White Sox: $73 million (13th)
2004 - Boston Red Sox: $125 million (2nd)
2003 - Florida Marlins: $63 million (20th)
2002 - Anaheim Angels: $61 million (15th)
2001 - Arizona Diamondbacks: $81 million (8th)
2000 - New York Yankees: $92 million (1st)
1999 - New York Yankees: $89 million (1st)
1998 - New York Yankees: $64 million (2nd)
1997 - Florida Marlins: $48 million (7th)
1996 - New York Yankees: $53 million (1st)
1995 - Atlanta Braves: $46 million (3rd)
1993 - Toronto Blue Jays: $43 million (1st)
1992 - Toronto Blue Jays: $44 million (1st)
1991 - Minnesota Twins: $23 million (13th)
You would note that teams in the top 10 highest payrolls (or financially, the top 33%) account for 14 World Series victories. That's 63.3% (or nearly two-thirds of the past 22 World Series titles). Making it worse is, teams in the top half of payrolls account for, quite literally, all but one of those 22 titles. Teams in the top 50% of payrolls account for 95.4% of World Series titles. Having the top payroll in baseball has "earned" a title 6 times (which means a little over a quarter of the last 22 titles, 27% total). And only the 2003 Florida Marlins fell into the bottom half. You might also notice that never in the past 22 years has a team falling in the BOTTOM third of payrolls won.
Well, ok. You need to make the playoffs to win the World Series, right? So let's see the "genetic" makeup of playoffs this year and the previous four years before (and let's keep in mind MLB's expansion to include two extra teams a year in the stupid wild card round - for real, just play a best of three series, guys!)
2014:
AL: Oakland, Kansas City, Baltimore, Detroit, Los Angeles Angels
NL: San Francisco, Pittsburgh, St. Louis, Los Angeles Dodgers, Washington Nationals
5 of 10 in top third. 3 of 10 in middle third. 2 of 10 in bottom third. 7 of 10 in top half.
2013:
AL: Cleveland, Tampa, Boston, Detroit, Oakland
NL: Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, St. Louis, Los Angeles Dodgers, Atlanta
4 of 10 in the top third. 3 of 10 in the middle third. 3 of 10 in bottom third. 5 of 10 in top half.
2012:
AL: Texas, Baltimore, New York Yankees, Oakland, Detroit
NL: Atlanta, St. Louis, Washington, Cincinnati, San Francisco
6 of 10 in the top third. 4 of 10 in the middle third. 0 of 10 in the bottom third. 7 of 10 in top half.
2011:
AL: New York Yankees, Detroit, Texas, Tampa
NL: Philadelphia, St. Louis, Milwaukee, Arizona
3 of 8 in top third. 3 of 8 in the middle third. 2 of 8 in the bottom third. 5 of 8 in top half.
2010:
AL: Tampa, Texas, Minnesota, New York Yankees
NL: Philadelphia, Cincinnati, San Francisco, Atlanta
3 of 8 in top third. 3 of 8 in middle third. 2 of 8 in bottom third. 5 of 8 in top half.
Here's the total break down:
BREAKDOWN PAST FIVE YEARS: (out of 46 slots)
Teams in Top Third Highest Payroll: 21 (45.6%)
Teams in Middle Third Payroll: 16 (34.7%)
Teams in Top Half Highest Payroll: 29 (63%)
Teams in Bottom Third Payroll: 9 (19.5%)
World Series Winners in the Past Five Years:
4 out of 5 were in the top ten (or top third) highest payrolls in MLB.
A lot of baseball fans still make the counterargument that money doesn't buy championships; that I am making a big deal over nothing. Money in baseball is a non-issue. It doesn't mean squat.
To be clear though (and I get why baseball fans in particular have a hard time with it), but the argument has never been that money buys championships. The argument is that money clearly makes a difference. It gives teams with more money, or that have the capacity to spend more money, a better statistical chance of advancing to the playoffs. And it clearly makes it more likely to advance to and win the World Series. I don't honestly know how anyone can look at the fact that in the past 22 years, only ONCE has a team in the lowest third of payrolls won a championship, then tell me it's a non-issue.
I haven't followed baseball at all this year, but the Dodgers, Angels, Tigers, Giants, and Nationals all fall into the top ten highest payrolls in baseball this year. I am going to go out on a limb and guarantee that one of those teams wins the World Series. And I reiterate: I know next to nothing about the sport of baseball or who is actually good!
