It's widely accepted that one win above replacement costs at least $5 million on the open market. But the Pittsburgh Pirates don't make decisions based on actions of others.
Entering this season, the Pirates needed to replace a 4.9 WAR player in Russell Martin. On the open market, Martin was worth roughly $25 million.
Over two years the Pirates received 8.9 wins above replacement from Martin. They paid all of $17 million for that, a cost that landed the organization over $40 million in performance.
Pittsburgh was faced with the daunting challenge of replacing Martin's production this year.