Jonah Keri's Worst 15 Contracts

[doublem23]

John Danks places #7, Adam Dunn as a dishonorable mention.

http://grantland.com/features/mlb-wo...albert-pujols/

Sounds about right.

[eriqjaffe]

I dunno if Danks should rate so high on the list. He was 26 and coming off 5 very good years. Injuries made that contract into a bad one, it was not a bad one when it was signed.

[MISoxfan]

His list is only looking at the contracts from here until they expire, it doesn't matter if it looked good at the time.

[winstonage]

Originally Posted by MISoxfan

His list is only looking at the contracts from here until they expire, it doesn't matter if it looked good at the time.

It was a bad deal. When Kenny couldn't get the Yankees 2 best pitching prospects for Danks, he extended him. Danks was starting to decline before the injury,unless he was pitching hurt, which is possible, he was awfully young to see his production decline like it did.

[ricker182]

Originally Posted by eriqjaffe

I dunno if Danks should rate so high on the list. He was 26 and coming off 5 very good years. Injuries made that contract into a bad one, it was not a bad one when it was signed.

It was a little too much money... but hey no salary cap, right? It shouldn't be on the list though. It wasn't, and still isn't, that bad.

[MISoxfan]

Originally Posted by winstonage

It was a bad deal. When Kenny couldn't get the Yankees 2 best pitching prospects for Danks, he extended him. Danks was starting to decline before the injury,unless he was pitching hurt, which is possible, he was awfully young to see his production decline like it did.

I agree, but it didn't look bad enough to belong on THIS list at the time.

[LoveYourSuit]

When you put the contract in perspective vs the other high revenue teams on the list, it is a crippling contract for a team like the Sox.

[Domeshot17]

It was not that bad of a deal when we signed it, but I agree the timing was funny. Danks had a down 2011, but he was a freaking 5 WAR pitcher 3 years in a row before that, with a 6 WAR mixed in. Had he ever had any support, he might have won a Cy Young. He was pitching in Chris Sale territory.

Its just bad luck, plain and simple. We signed out Ace (yes, he was better than Burls during that stretch) to a long term deal and then he had a bad shoulder injury and had surgery. It happens

[WhiteSox5187]

Originally Posted by Domeshot17

It was not that bad of a deal when we signed it, but I agree the timing was funny. Danks had a down 2011, but he was a freaking 5 WAR pitcher 3 years in a row before that, with a 6 WAR mixed in. Had he ever had any support, he might have won a Cy Young. He was pitching in Chris Sale territory.

Its just bad luck, plain and simple. We signed out Ace (yes, he was better than Burls during that stretch) to a long term deal and then he had a bad shoulder injury and had surgery. It happens

I don't think Danks was ever anywhere near Chris Sale territory, but he was a very good pitcher. Danks' poor 2011 season was a potential red flag (I also don't remember if he was on the DL that year or not) but it did seem to be a blip. It was a good deal at the time but as you mentioned, the injuries were just bad luck.

[Domeshot17]

Originally Posted by WhiteSox5187

I don't think Danks was ever anywhere near Chris Sale territory, but he was a very good pitcher. Danks' poor 2011 season was a potential red flag (I also don't remember if he was on the DL that year or not) but it did seem to be a blip. It was a good deal at the time but as you mentioned, the injuries were just bad luck.

I did not think so too, but the numbers don't lie. Dank's WARS 2008-2010 were 6.0 - 5.0 - 5.4. tremendous numbers.

[SoxSpeed22]

Before the injury, I thought Danks was a great #3, but it will come down to what he does this year to see what kind of contract this will be. I think if he is our 4th best starter, I would call that a win.

[Irishsox1]

For every 15 bad contacts, there are a bunch where the team is getting a massive deal, especially with younger players so in a way it evens out.

But, the worst contact in baseball is Nick Swisher. 4 years/56 Million. Nick Swisher is going to be paid $15 Million dollars this year! That guy isn't anywhere near that type of money.

[shes]

Reds just signed Homer Bailey to a 6/105 deal. Guess they wanted to ensure a spot in this column next season.

Reminds me a bit of the ill-advised Danks contract, except that Danks was much better than Bailey at that point.

[Foulke You]

Originally Posted by Domeshot17

I did not think so too, but the numbers don't lie. Dank's WARS 2008-2010 were 6.0 - 5.0 - 5.4. tremendous numbers.

I knew Danks was good during that stretch but I didn't realize he had been matching Sale in WAR. Interesting. I would imagine Sale still leads in the K/BB ratio, E.R.A. and other traditional pitching metrics though which probably pushes him beyond Danks. You are right though that he had some of the worst run support around. Lots of hard luck no decisions and hard luck losses. Prior to the injury, I always personally thought of Danks as a #2 where Sale seems to be a pure #1.

[soxfanreggie]

Originally Posted by doublem23

John Danks places #7, Adam Dunn as a dishonorable mention.

If this list is done a year or two ago, does anyone disagree that Dunn would have been on the list?

As far as #1, Yanks are lucky that A-Rod was suspended for the year to save them $25 million. I bet they were hoping for a lifetime ban to get out of that contract. Knowing A-Rod's situation, the only buyout he'll take to "retire" is full value.