Five weeks into the season, Rapids coach Pablo Mastroeni laid out his philosophy.

“I don’t label anything. I have 30 starters. At any point anyone can come in,” he explained.

Ever since then, we’ve been trying to figure out a way of measuring how effective this approach has been, which players are contributing the most per minute and per salary, and which ones are under performing.

This chart is what we came up with. It’s not perfect, but it is intended to give readers a visual snapshot of how the Rapids’ players are performing.

MOBILE USERS: Click here to view Rapids performance charts

Chart Explainer: This chart graphs performance along the vertical axis by minutes played along the horizontal axis. The size of each player’s bubble represents the amount of guaranteed salary compensation that player is paid — the larger the bubble, the more money the player makes. Hover over a bubble to see which player it represents and additional information. The chart can also be sorted by position.

At the top, you can also click the “Charts” tab to view a list of value indicators, including how a player performs per minute, and how his performance rates compared to his compensation.

Measuring Performance: Perhaps the most difficult aspect to this is finding a fair way to rate player performance. The ratings we use are based on MLS Fantasy Manager’s scoring formula. Again, this is not perfect, but takes into account a number of different statistics including games played, goals and assists. Yellow and red cards negatively impact a player’s score.

Players can also earn additional defending or attacking bonuses for good defending or creating scoring chances. Defenders and goalkeepers also earn bonuses for keeping a clean sheet. A full list of the MLS Fantasy Manager scoring system can be found here.

This chart only includes stats from MLS fixtures and does not include U.S. Open Cup play.

What the chart shows: At quick glance, it’s easy to see which players are most productive and which ones are seeing the most time on the field. A quick takeaway finds 14 players above the median score line.

Some players are far more productive per minute than others. Vicente Sanchez is the obvious club leader in points per minute played with 37 points in 328 minutes. Second on the team is Dillon Powers, followed by Drew Moor, Marc Burch and Jose Mari.

It is also easy to see which players are least productive per minute played. Among players with at least 100 minutes, Charles Eloundou has produced the fewest points per minute played, followed by Gabriel Torres, Nick Labrocca, Edson Buddle and Danny Mwanga.

Value indicators: When you look at the number of points per $1,000 in guaranteed salary, Shane O’Neill is the clear leader. The Rapids front office gets the most bang for their buck from O’Neill, followed by Clint Irwin, Jared Watts, Dillon Serna and John Berner.

It should be noted, the higher paid players are lower on the list, including Moor who scored well on points per minute played. What this chart does not take into account are intangibles such as leadership or how a big name, higher-salaried player may impact things such as ticket sales.

Daniel Boniface: 303-954-1104, dboniface@denverpost.com or twitter.com/danielboniface