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Sports Ranking the 12 worst contracts in MLB after trade deadline

Ranking the 12 worst contracts in MLB after trade deadline

75756A5E-120A-4932-810C-2FD980DB785E
By Tim Kelly, Audacy Sports
670 The Score
Updated on

(AUDACY) It's too early to say that the 10-year, $341-million deal that the New York Mets signed four-time All-Star shortstop Francisco Lindor to after acquiring him from Cleveland was a mistake, but owner Steve Cohen and company perhaps wish they would have waited until after his first season in Queens to make such an ambitious commitment.

The reality is that the way Lindor -- currently on the injured list with a right oblique strain -- has played in 2021 almost certainly wouldn't have earned him that deal even on the free-agent market.

Across his first 88 games, Lindor has slashed .228/.326/.376 with 11 home runs, 36 RBIs and a .702 OPS. Lindor has walked at a career-high 11.2% clip and posted four defensive runs saved, so he's hardly been a detriment to the Mets.

But there's a realistic chance that if the Mets had allowed Lindor to play out his contract year, he may have had to settle for a qualifying offer this offseason to rebuild his value, rather than inking a deal that runs through the 2031 season. If Lindor declined the qualifying offer, the Mets could've attempted to re-sign him to lesser deal on the free-agent market or collected draft compensation if he departed. It's not like there wouldn't have been other options at shortstop to pivot to -- Carlos Correa, Corey Seager, Trevor Story, Javier Báez and Brandon Crawford can all become free agents this offseason.

We're not going to bet against Lindor figuring it out, but if he peaked in Cleveland, that's a scary proposition for the Mets when you consider that his new contract won't even begin until the 2022 season.

While we wait to see how Lindor's deal pans out, here are the 12 worst contracts in baseball currently, with MLB's trade deadline having recently passed.

Jackie Bradley Jr.
Photo credit Stacy Revere/Getty Images

12. Jackie Bradley Jr., Milwaukee Brewers

Initial deal: 2 years/$24 million
Amount remaining after 2021: Likely $17.5 million

A former Boston Red Sox fan favorite, Bradley remains a tremendous defender. The problem is that in his first season in Milwaukee, his offensive output has been so poor -- .177/.253/.293 with a .546 OPS through last Thursday -- that Bradley has still been one of the least valuable players in the league. Bradley can opt out of his two-year, $24-million deal after this season, but he almost certainly won't considering he's due to make $9.5 million in 2022. Bradley's deal includes a mutual $12-million option for 2023, which the Brewers will probably decline, forcing them to pay an $8-million buyout. This deal could really hamper a team that's not typically a major spender.

Madison Bumgarner
Photo credit Ralph Freso/Getty Images

11. Madison Bumgarner, Arizona Diamondbacks

Initial deal: 5 years/$85 million
Amount remaining after 2021: $60 million

Bumgarner is arguably the greatest postseason pitcher in MLB history, but he hasn't appeared in the playoffs since 2016 and is part of a roster unlikely to return anytime soon. The soon-to-be 32-year-old Bumgarner did pitch a non-no-hitter in a seven-inning game earlier this season, but he has a 5.43 ERA in 24 starts in Arizona.

David Price
Photo credit Michael Owens/Getty Images

10. David Price, Los Angeles Dodgers

Initial deal: 7 years/$217 million
Amount remaining after 2021: $32 million

Price did help the Boston Red Sox to win the 2018 World Series during this deal, but he has a 3.83 ERA since the start of this deal -- not a disastrous mark but not worthy of this deal either. 2022 will be the final season of Price's deal, and he'll make $32 million. The Red Sox were supposed to be on the hook for $48 million over the final three seasons of Price's contract as part of the Mookie Betts trade made before the 2020 campaign. Price opting out of the 2020 season lessened that amount slightly, but Boston will still pay half of Price's salary in 2022.

Didi Gregorius
Photo credit Maddie Meyer/Getty Images

9. Didi Gregorius, Philadelphia Phillies

Initial deal: 2 years/$28 million
Amount remaining after 2021: $14.5 million

Gregorius was excellent in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, homering 10 times and driving in 40 runs in 60 games, which earned him a new two-year, $28-million deal. Unfortunately for the Phillies, the 31-year-old Gregorius has struggled to stay healthy in his second season in red pinstripes and hasn't performed well when he's played. He has -9 defensive runs saved, which may force the Phillies to move him to another position for the final year of his deal, when he's slated to make $14.5 million. The scariest part is that Gregorius has struggled at the plate as well, slashing just .209/.263/.382 with a .645 OPS through last Thursday.

Patrick Corbin
Photo credit Mitchell Layton/Getty Images

8. Patrick Corbin, Washington Nationals

Initial deal: 6 years/$140 million
Amount remaining after 2021: $82 million

It's hard to call the Corbin deal a disaster because he had a 3.25 ERA, 3.49 FIP and 4.7 fWAR across 202 innings in the first year of the deal, also helping the Nationals to win their first World Series title that same season. However, in parts of two seasons since 2019, Corbin has a 5.36 ERA in 31 starts through Thursday. To make matters worse, this is a back-loaded deal that also includes some deferred money. Corbin is slated to make $35 million in 2024, the final year of his deal. In 2025, he'll collect $10 million from the Nationals, even though his time with the team will likely have concluded.

Giancarlo Stanton
Photo credit Jim McIsaac/Getty Images

7. Giancarlo Stanton, New York Yankees

Initial deal: 13 years/$325 million
Amount remaining after 2021: $189 million

Derek Jeter once signed a 10-year, $189-million deal with the Yankees, and it worked out swimmingly. Stanton has $189 million remaining after 2021 on the 13-year deal he initially signed with Miami Marlins, and it doesn't figure to go as well for the Yankees. Stanton, 31, hardly played between 2019 and 2020 and is pretty much exclusively a DH at this stage of his career. He's slashing .255/.352/.450 with 16 home runs and 46 RBIs in 2021 through action Thursday, so it's not as though he's a bad player. But he's certainly not playing at a high enough level to justify what figure to be some lean years at the end of this pact.

Jason Heyward
Photo credit Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images

6. Jason Heyward, Chicago Cubs

Initial deal: 8 years/$184 million
Amount remaining after 2021: $64 million

Heyward has been an excellent defensive outfielder during his time with the Cubs, but that's not enough to make up for what's been underwhelming offensive productive pretty much from the get-go during this deal. Heyward is in the midst of the worst offensive season of his career, slashing just .198/.272/.325 through Thursday. The Cubs are pretty much stuck with him for two more years. Heyward will also collect $20 million in deferrals between 2024 and 2027.

Stephen Strasburg
Photo credit Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

5. Stephen Strasburg, Washington Nationals

Initial deal: 7 years/$245 million
Amount remaining after 2021: $175 million

Despite a history of injury problems, the Nationals gave Strasburg a seven-year deal after he won the 2019 World Series MVP. In the time since, injuries have limited him to just 26 2/3 innings. Mind you, the Nationals gave Strasburg this deal rather than star third baseman Anthony Rendon, who left to sign an identical deal with the Los Angeles Angels. It remains to be seen how Rendon's deal ages, but you'd prefer to take your chances with his bat than Strasburg's health moving forward.

Robinson Cano
Photo credit Emilee Chinn/Getty Images

4. Robinson Canó, New York Mets

Initial deal: 10 years/$240 million
Amount remaining after 2021: $48 million

Canó had some productive seasons early on in this deal, which he initially signed with the Seattle Mariners. However, he was suspended for half of the 2018 season -- his last year with the Mariners -- after failing a PED test. Canó struggled in his first season with the Mets but rebounded during the pandemic-shortened season, hitting .316 with 10 home runs and 30 RBIs. He was then suspended for the entire 2021 season after failing another PED test. The Mets don't have to pay Canó in 2021, but they will over the next two campaigns, when he's due $48 million and may have to be a DH (if that returns to the National League).

Eric Hosmer
Photo credit Denis Poroy/Getty Images

3. Eric Hosmer, San Diego Padres

Initial deal: 8 years/$144 million
Amount remaining after 2021: $59 million

For all the great moves that Padres general manager A.J. Preller has made in recent seasons, the eight-year deal issued to Hosmer is a mess. A former Kansas City Royals star, Hosmer has a -0.3 fWAR in 2021, and thePadres were apparently interested in potentially attaching a highly regarded prospect to a trade if it allowed them to remove what's still owed to Hosmer in the future. That didn't happen, and for now, the Padres are on the hook for nearly $60 million to Hosmer after 2021.

Miguel Cabrera
Photo credit Ron Schwane/Getty Images

2. Miguel Cabrera, Detroit Tigers

Initial deal: 8 years/$248 million
Amount remaining after 2021: $80 million

It's sad to say, but Cabrera has gone from being an all-time great hitter to one of the worst players in the sport. Eight years after posting a 1.078 OPS en route to winning his second consecutive American League MVP, Cabrera has just a .679 OPS in 2021. While he's 38, Cabrera still has two guaranteed years remaining on his deal, and he'll make $32 million in each of them. The Tigers will certainly decline their half of the $30-million mutual options for 2024 and 2025, but that will leave them to pay Cabrera $10 million buyouts in each season.

Chris Davis
Photo credit Greg Fiume/Getty Images

1. Chris Davis, Baltimore Orioles

Initial deal: 7 years/$161 million
Amount remaining after 2021: $17 million

Davis has missed the entire 2021 season after having arthroscopic surgery on his left hip but still has one more year left on what's been one of the worst deals in baseball history. Since Davis' deal began in 2016, the former All-Star has been worth -2.3 fWAR, which trails only Albert Pujols, whose 10-year deal will conclude at the end of the 2021 season. If the Orioles hadn't signed Davis to this deal, might they have been able to keep Manny Machado? We'll never know, but they'd prefer not to have this contract on the books regardless.

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