Why the Orlando Hudson Contract Is Bad For Baseball

There are a lot of things wrong with Major League Baseball, but the Orlando Hudson contract is the perfect example of the failing economics perpetuated under Commissioner Bud Selig.

Hudson recently signed a one year, $5 million contract with the Minnesota Twins. Not a bad deal for a guy who hit .283 with nine home runs last year.

But let’s break the deal down further. First of all, it’s only one year, so that means the Twins are looking to win everything this year; there’s no long-term component to this deal.

Second, with only nine home runs last year, and 77 total over his eight years in the majors, the Twins certainly didn’t sign him for his power. The .283 average isn’t bad in today’s MLB, but his OBP is .357, meaning he gets the little things done.

Despite that, this signing is definitely because of his performance in the field.

Hudson has four Gold Gloves and a .988 fielding percentage. Noteworthy is the fact that .982 is the worst fielding percentage of his career, recorded in the 2008 season.

But here’s why it’s bad for baseball: Hudson should’ve been locked up in a multi-year deal. There should’ve been a bidding war out there for Hudson’s services.

One of the other rumored suitors for Hudson’s services was the Cleveland Indians. The Indians have fallen on hard times lately as their owner slashes payroll and trades away Cy Young Award-winning pitchers, and then wonders why the stadium that used to be filled to capacity every night now struggles to get half-full.

The Indians’ second basemen looks to be Luis Valbuena. Valbuena hit a pretty weak .250 in 2009 but had one more home run, 10, than Hudson. But Valbuena supposed to be a guy who can get it done in the field and get on base.

His fielding percentage isn’t bad, .981 over two seasons, but he’s been used as a utility infielder, and his struggles against left handed pitching have kept him out of some games.

Keeping the numbers relative, Hudson is a guy who should be a Cleveland Indian right now behind a starting rotation of C.C. Sabathia and Cliff Lee. The Indians should be playoff favorites and making opposing teams circle the calendar dates as games to survive.

Instead, the Indians have joined most of the rest of the “have nots” in the MLB by trading or not signing home grown talent because of financial restrictions.

The Twins aren’t doing themselves any favors because, even if they win a soft AL Central, there’s no guarantee the Twins will be good enough to beat the Yankees or Red Sox, who will once again field powerhouse teams.

And, since Hudson was signed to a one year contract, there’s no guarantee they’ll have his services next year and they may have to rebuild again.

The Indians, meanwhile, continue to flounder because ownership no longer can afford to have a large payroll and the prospect of another losing season will not bring fans back into the stadium, creating a vicious Catch-22 that’s hard to break.

This isn’t a story unique to the Indians, Twins, or the AL Central. It’s a sad fact of the current state of baseball, and the reason America’s Pastime is fading behind the NFL and NBA.

As the players get ready for 2010, centerfielder Grady Sizemore has talked about wanting to remain an Indian for the rest of his career.

Given the Indians' recent past and the likelihood Selig will do nothing to change baseball's economics for the better in the next two years, all any one can do his hope.

There are no guarantees anymore except your team's favorite player wearing Yankee Pinstripes.