Once again Canadian Business Online has chosen the Best and Worst Values in baseball — the best and worst players in 2008 on a per-dollar basis. Our selections were guided by various stat-to-salary ratios, but we also considered factors like playing time and subjective impressions. (For the Worst Value team, we tried to avoid selecting players who were actually good in 2008, even if their ratios were near the top of the Worst Value charts. Some of our Worst Value picks don't appear in our tables because they didn't play enough games.) The total payroll for our Worst Value team, with 11 members, is $154,495,000. Our Best Value team could be had for just $4,736,330.

A note on our selections: The best values in baseball are almost always players in their first three years of service, as teams are allowed to keep salaries artificially low for these indentured players. Thus, our Best and Worst Values are not truly comparing apples to apples, but illustrate the stark contrast between the different sources of "value" in baseball. (We list the best post-free agency values at the end of this article.)

Read on for our Best Value and Worst Value player picks of 2008.

Catcher

Worst Value: Jason Varitek, Red Sox, $10,442,000 (.672 OPS, 43 RBI)
Best Value: Geovany Soto, Cubs, $401,000 (.868 OPS, 86 RBI)

At 36 (46 in catcher years), Jason Varitek put up the worst numbers of his career with a .220/.313/.359 (AVG/OBP/SLG) line that drooped to .175/.299/.233 with runners in scoring position. A glaring weak spot in an otherwise strong lineup, the team captain threatened to bring the ship down with him. "Varitek" sounds like it should be an Internet stock (NASDAQ: VTEK). If it were, you'd be shorting.

Dishonorable mentions: Ivan Rodriguez, Kenji Johjima.

It was a charmed rookie season for Geovany Soto, who tied for the lead in home runs among catchers and was second in RBI. He started the All-Star Game, guided the Cubs' pitching staff to the third-best ERA in the National League, made it to the playoffs, and will likely be named National League Rookie of the Year. Enjoy it while you can, Geovany. Life's not always this good… especially when you play for the Cubs (who are already out

Honorable mentions: Russell Martin, Brian McCann

First base

Worst Value: Richie Sexson, Mariners/Yankees/softball league near you, $15,500,000 (12 HR, .382 SLG)
Best Value: Joey Votto, Reds, $390,000 (24 HR, .506 SLG)

After making our Worst Value list last year, Richie Sexson had a 2008 that had us trying out words like "worster" and "worstest." The former All-Star was released by two teams in a span of two months. The good news for Sexson: He probably won't be on our Worst Value list next year. The bad news: You can't be overpaid when you're unemployed.

Dishonorable mentions: Jason Giambi, Paul Konerko