Article: The Rising Cost Of Relief Pitching

Does purchasing 1 win equate to a player performing at 1 WAR?

If so, the Twins have made a huge mistake not picking up Baker's option. In order to get market value performance from Baker, he would have to perform at little better than 1 WAR to meet that level. He can do that in a half season.

Maybe his arm and health have not progressed and he can't be expected to pitch well for even a half season.

According to Fangraphs, data from last season suggestes that 1 WAR is equal to somewhere between 4-5 million. That's a win above replacement level, not a win. A win, for WAR purposes is somewhere around 10 runs I believe? So no, the long and short is no, they're not the same. But without the numbers in front of me I'm not entirely sure what that figure is, and since I'm at work on a Saturday I cant quite go find the numbers for you, but head over to Fangraphs and you should be able to find way more data on the subject than you've ever wanted.

Would the cost of 1 WAR on the open market be greater than the value attributed by fangraphs when assessing player value?