PLAYING GM

One blogger on ESPN's SportsNation website had an interesting idea. Try putting together a baseball team, based on 2008 salaries, that could (theoretically) contend for a championship. The only rule is that your full roster of players can't exceed $50 million. So, here we go, with my team of thirteen position players and twelve pitchers, including a five man starting rotation, and a bullpen.

STARTING LINEUP
1. Curtis Granderson, CF, $1,000,000
2. Hanley Ramirez, SS, $490,000
3. Joe Mauer, C, $6,250,000
4. Ryan Braun, LF, $455,000
5. David Wright, 3B, $5,250,000
6. Milton Bradley, RF, $5,250,000
7. Kevin Youkilis, 1B, $3,000,000
8. Brandon Phillips, 2B, $2,937,500
9. Pitcher's Spot

BENCH
1. Geovany Soto, C, $400,000
2. Shannon Stewart, OF, $1,500,000
3. Billy Butler, 1B, $399,000
4. Kelly Johnson, 2B, $430,000
5. Pablo Ozuna, IF, $1,050,000

Total for position players: $27,711,500

STARTING ROTATION
1. Jake Peavy, SP, $6,500,000
2. Brandon Webb, SP, $5,500,000
3. Jair Jurrjens, SP, $390,000
4. Edinson Volquez, SP, $392,500
5. Jon Lester, SP, $421,500

BULLPEN
1. Chad Billingsley, LR, $415,000
2. Joe Beimel, LR, $1,925,000
3. Chad Qualls, MR, $1,312,500
4. Chad Bradford, MR, $3, 666,666
5. JP Howell, MR/SU, $397,400
6. Mike Gonzalez, SU, $2,362,500
7. Jonathan Papelbon, CL, $775,000

Total Salary: $49,769,566

Just in under the $50,000,000 "cap". Anyone care to agree? Disagree?