(Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)
In the early-to-mid 2010s, the Baltimore Orioles were actually contenders.
They secured postseason berths in 2012, 2014, and 2016.
Slugger Chris Davis was a part of all those teams.
He was also a top slugger during those days: from 2012 to 2016, a span of five seasons, he hit 197 home runs, or 39 per year.
But the Orioles decided to give him a mammoth contract that they would later regret: a seven-year, $161 million pact signed in January 2016.
Injuries and deep struggles limited his effectiveness after signing the deal and he was a shell of his former self until 2021, the last time he played in the majors.
Since a lot of the money has been deferred, Davis owns a rather odd (and sad) distinction.
He was the highest-paid Oriole in 2023.
the highest paid baltimore oriole in 2023 pic.twitter.com/MBWOJOAP6N
— Codify (@CodifyBaseball) November 26, 2023
Per Spotrac, Davis made $9,166,667 in 2023, more than their highest-earning active player: Anthony Santander ($7.4 million).
As part of their contract, Davis will defer $42 million over a 15-year period, so he will continue to get paid roughly $2.8 million until 2037.
Basically, they will still be paying Davis for 15 more years.
The contract was a disaster, and even though it was an obvious overpay, saying that pre-2016 Davis was a bad hitter would be unfair.
Still, it’s baseball: these things happen sometimes.
You could argue that the contract set the franchise back at least a few years, but blaming their late-2010s struggles exclusively on it would be foolish.
The team is soaring back to relevancy and won 101 games in 2023.
With a strong farm system and a wide open contention window, there are better days ahead for Baltimore, Davis or not.
The post Orioles Fans Are Reminded Of A Shocking Payroll Fact appeared first on The Cold Wire.