This article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon, Oct. 25, 2011 - Missed opportunities: The Cardinals left 12 men on base losing 4-2 to the Texas Rangers. The teams come back to St. Louis Wednsesday where the Cardinals, down 3-2 in the series, must win the next two games to avoid elimination.
Based on salaries compiled by ESPN.com (Cardinals, Rangers), here is a breakdown of what each team is paying its players:
Other notes:
- Each of the top five Cardinals players makes more than $10 million, while only the top two Rangers crack eight figures.
- Rangers designated hitter Michael Young gets 18 percent of the team's total salary payout. Matt Holliday, the Cards' highest paid player, gets less than 14 percent.
- 44 percent of the Cardinals' salaries go to pitchers, compared with 31 percent for the Rangers (two of the 12 Cardinals pitchers' salaries were not provided; all 11 Rangers pitchers' salaries were listed).
- Likewise, the $35 million paid to Cardinals infielders is about 30 percent of the total. The Rangers pay $21 million to their infield, or 22 percent.
