Ranking the Best and Worst MLB Free-Agent Contracts So Far
In keeping with the spirit of Thanksgiving, there's no better time to break out praise for the free-agent contracts that have been handed out so far.
Of course, not all signings this offseason have been winners, so in addition to handing out kudos, criticism will be levied when it is warranted.
There have been 11 major signings so far. We are going to rank all of them in ascending order from worst to best. The criteria for the list are strictly my own, based on how I think the player fills a team's need and whether the player will be worth his salary by the time the contract ends.
Just because a player has the name value doesn't necessarily make the contract any better or worse than another deal.
With that said, here are the best deals teams have given out to free agents.
Note: All stats courtesy of Baseball Reference and FanGraphs unless otherwise noted. Contract information courtesy of ESPN's Free Agent Tracker.
No. 11 Carlos Ruiz, C, Philadelphia Phillies
1 of 11
Contract: Three years, $26 million (2014-16)
If the Phillies were in the market for a catcher, there were plenty of better available options than Carlos Ruiz.
He is going to be 35 in January and had a disastrous 2013 season that saw his batting average drop 57 points, on-base percentage fall 74 points and slugging percentage plummet 172 points.
Making matters worse is that Ruiz stopped hitting right-handed pitching, putting up a .636 OPS in 250 plate appearances.
His defense is still adequate, which makes him worth 1.5 wins per season since the offensive bar for catching is so low.
But for a team that needs to stop spending money and investing multiple years in players entering their mid-30s, Ruiz represents another bad investment for the Phillies. They could have gotten in on the Brian McCann sweepstakes or tried to entice Jarrod Saltalamacchia. Even Dioner Navarro, who is a platoon player, would have been an upgrade and is five years younger than Ruiz.
No. 10 Javier Lopez, RP, San Francisco Giants
2 of 11
Contract: Three years, $13 million
For all the good that Giants general manager Brian Sabean has done helping build two World Series winners in the last four years, he keeps making questionable moves that put the team in limbo moving forward.
Sabean overpaid Hunter Pence (five years, $90 million) for reasons that still aren't clear other than the Giants' desperate need for offense. He then overpaid for Tim Lincecum (two years, $35 million) because of some misplaced sense of loyalty.
The cherry on top of the already-melted sundae was giving three years and $13 million to lefty specialist Javier Lopez, who is 36 years old, hasn't pitched more than 40 innings in a season since 2011 and had an .805 OPS against right-handed hitters in 2013.
I have no issue with a team signing a relief specialist to a one-year deal with a vesting option, but to commit three years to any reliever is insane.
No. 9 Marlon Byrd, OF, Philadelphia Phillies
3 of 11
Contract: Two years, $16 million (2014-15)
There was a lot of excitement coming out of Philadelphia when it was announced the Phillies were going to join the rest of baseball by hiring an analytics guy to evaluate players and help general manager Ruben Amaro with decisions.
Based on the Ruiz signing, as well as Marlon Byrd's contract, Amaro doesn't seem to have any interest in actually noticing what the deeper analysis of these players shows.
Byrd's deal isn't as bad as Ruiz's because it is for less money and just two years instead of three, but it still sticks out like a sore thumb. The 36-year-old had the highest strikeout rate of his career in 2013 (24.9 percent), yet he managed to offset it by having his best batting average on balls in play since 2003.
He slugged under .400 and played in just 166 games combined in 2011 and 2012.
One fluky season at the age of 36 doesn't suggest a player who deserves to be paid like a starting outfielder.
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No. 8 Jason Vargas, SP, Kansas City Royals
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Contract: Four years, $32 million (2014-17)
When the deal between Jason Vargas and the Royals was announced, I immediately hated it.
I have calmed down slightly since that time because the going rate for a No. 4-5 type starter is probably going to be $8 million per season.
I still don't like the length of the deal. Small-market teams like Kansas City will have to commit more to free agents in order to get them to sign, but four years for a pitcher with a fringe-average fastball and high home run rate is not going to end well.
The good news, at least for Vargas, is he gets to pitch in another big park that will help his knack for giving up fly balls turn into outs instead of homers. He will also benefit from playing in front of a strong Royals defense.
No. 7 Chris Young, OF, New York Mets
5 of 11
Contract: One year, $7.25 million
In desperate need of outfielders, the New York Mets gambled on Chris Young with a one-year, low-risk contract in the hopes he can bounce back after a disastrous season with Oakland.
Young is an excellent defensive center fielder, something the Mets need in spacious Citi Field. His range and first step are as good as there is in baseball, but he has to hit enough to play every day.
Hitting for average has never been Young's strong suit because his approach is terrible and there is a lot of swing and miss to his game. But he's always made up for it with power, blasting at least 20 homers in four seasons between 2007 and 2011.
That didn't happen last year with the Athletics.
Young was a bit unlucky with a .237 batting average on balls in play, despite having a good line-drive percentage (21.6).
The only reason I'm skittish on this deal is because Citi Field is another big park, but getting away from the pitching in the AL West could be great for Young's career.
No. 6 Josh Johnson, SP, San Diego Padres
6 of 11
Contract: One year, $8 million
It seems like Josh Johnson's MLB epitaph is going to be about unfulfilled potential instead of dominant performance. He was brilliant for the Marlins when healthy, but the bottom dropped out with Toronto in 2013 as his home run rate exploded (1.66 per nine innings).
Some of the problems might be attributable to the bone spurs Johnson had removed in October, but how do you put faith in the soon-to-be 30-year-old finding success over 180-200 innings?
I did love Johnson's decision to sign with San Diego, if for no other reason than it will allow him to get away with more mistakes because Petco Park is where fly balls go to die. It also gives the Padres a potential No. 2 starter to use as trade bait in July, as long as he stays healthy.
No. 5 Dan Haren, SP, Los Angeles Dodgers
7 of 11
Contract: One year, $10 million
Honestly, you could flip the fifth and sixth spots on this list with no argument from me. I favor Haren slightly because he isn't as much of a health risk, though back problems have sapped a lot of his value the last two years.
Haren is a nice piece to fill out a Los Angeles rotation that is likely going to lose Ricky Nolasco and already has Clayton Kershaw and Zack Greinke at the top. The righty doesn't have to be the Cy Young contender he was in 2011; just providing 170-180 quality innings will make this a solid deal.
I'm not as convinced as others that Haren's strong second half with Washington (3.52 ERA, 70-14 strikeout-to-walk ratio) is indicative of what's to come. He did the same thing in 2012 with the Angels after a bad first half (3.95 ERA, 75-15 strikeout-to-walk ratio).
Still, if Haren can keep his ERA in the 4.00 range, he's going to be well worth the $10 million because he doesn't walk hitters and still generates plenty of strikeouts.
No. 4 David Murphy, OF, Cleveland Indians
8 of 11
Contract: Two years, $12 million (2014-15)
David Murphy was given the difficult task of taking over for Josh Hamilton as Texas' everyday left fielder in 2013.
It was an understandable move by the Rangers. Murphy was coming off a 2012 season with a .304/.380/.479 line, and he's reached double digits in homers every year since 2008.
Unfortunately, Murphy's reputation as a platoon player caught up to him in 2013.
He owns a career .817 OPS against righties and .657 against lefties, which makes him a good fit for a Cleveland team that has a solid collection of outfielders.
For instance, if the Indians decide to trade or non-tender Drew Stubbs, Murphy can pair with lefty-killer Ryan Raburn in left field. If he were being asked to start every day again, this deal would rate much lower.
Instead, the Indians have a clear plan in place to make the most use of Murphy's and Raburn's skills.
Even though $12 million might seem like a large investment for a platoon outfielder, remember that Chris Young got $7.25 million for one year after being relegated to backup duty in Oakland.
No. 3 Jhonny Peralta, SS, St. Louis Cardinals
9 of 11
Contract: Four years, $53 million (2014-17)
I wasn't sure where to put Peralta. If he stays at shortstop for the duration of the contract, he will probably belong in the No. 2 spot. But given the strong possibility he ends up at third base in Year 3 or 4, his value plummets because the bat doesn't profile at the position.
Given how little production the Cardinals got out of shortstop Pete Kozma in 2013, Peralta is going to seem like a combination of Derek Jeter and Cal Ripken. He has never been a consistent player, though, posting below-average OPS+ totals in five of his 11 full seasons.
However, with the offensive barrier for shortstop being so low, an OPS+ in the 90-95 range would make him an upper-echelon player at the position.
Peralta is not likely to hit 20-plus homers again, but 12-15 with a .260 average and fringe defense at shortstop is enough to make him worth two or three wins above replacement.
No. 2 Tim Hudson, SP, San Francisco Giants
10 of 11
Contract: Two years, $23 million
If I am going to criticize Brian Sabean for bad moves, I have to give praise when he makes a great move. And make no mistake, signing Tim Hudson for two years and $23 million is a great move.
Before suffering a nasty ankle injury that ended his 2013 season, Hudson was having a typical late-career Hudson season. His ERA was around league average at 3.97, but he was missing more bats than in 2012 and kept a ground-ball rate in the 55 percent range.
Hudson's velocity isn't what it used to be, with a fastball that rarely breaks 90, but he gets such great sink on it that hitters are unable to elevate it. He has always had good control of all his pitches, so extra runners aren't getting on base.
Allowing Hudson to pitch in spacious AT&T Park, not to mention road games against division rivals in San Diego and Los Angeles, will give the right-hander an excellent chance to post sub-3.50 ERAs and chew up 190-200 innings.
Considering the Giants only had to commit one more year and $1.5 million more per season than what the Dodgers are paying Dan Haren, this move looks like a steal.
No. 1 Brian McCann, C, New York Yankees
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Contract: Five years, $85 million (2014-18)
At first, I was uncertain how I felt about Brian McCann's deal with the Yankees. It seemed like too long an investment in a catcher who wasn't likely to stay behind the plate for the duration of the deal and has seen his offensive production drop the last two years.
The more I thought about the contract, though, the more it grew on me.
First, how rare is it to find an average defensive catcher who is capable of hitting 20-plus homers per season and owns a .350 career on-base percentage?
Second, how much money is that kind of catcher really worth? Yadier Molina gave the Cardinals a deal that looks like a bargain now. McCann has been the most consistent offensive catcher in baseball since 2006, hitting at least 20 homers every year since 2008.
Even if McCann doesn't stay at catcher for the duration of the deal, a likely scenario considering the depth New York has at the position in the minors, he probably won't have to move until 2016 or 2017. That gives him two or three years of time, more than enough to be worth the money the Yankees will pay him.
Moving to first base or DH will hurt McCann's overall value, but there is enough power to see him at least being league average at those positions.
Considering some of the past deals we have seen the Yankees make, not to mention what they might have to fork out for Robinson Cano, McCann's deal looks like a steal.
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