The San Diego Padres bit the bullet today by optioning second baseman Jedd Gyorko and his $35 million contract to the minors.
Gyorko had struggled considerably at the plate over the last two seasons. After a breakout rookie year in 2013 that saw him hit 23 home runs with a .249 batting average, Gyorko just barely hit above the Mendoza line and didn’t show the same power.
Manager Bud Black said Gyorko “came into camp in as good of shape as he can get to but it might not have been the best shape, baseball-wise,” so it’s possible conditioning was an issue for him.
The club rewarded him with a 5-year $35 million contract last April despite only one-year of service time, taking a risk that he would continue to break out and the deal would be an affordable one for the Padres. Unfortunately that hasn’t happened yet. These type of contracts are becoming the norm in the MLB. It allows a club to save money, while paying the player more than the minimum they are making on rookie scale deals. The Padres still owe a remaining $33 million through 2019.
Been hard for Jedd Gyorko to find regular playing time during his struggles. Last back-to-back starts was May 19,20
— Marty Caswell (@MartyCaswell) June 10, 2015
It’s expected the Padres will use versatile infielder Cory Spangenberg at second base for the time being.
The Tampa Bay Rays inked Evan Longoria in his rookie year to a six-year $17.5 million dollar deal which turned out to be one of the best contracts in baseball history as he made three All-Star teams and won many awards during the span of that deal. The Rays also have extended Matt Moore (five-year $14 million) and Chris Archer (six-year $20 million) when they were in their first year of service time. Salvador Perez may have his five-year $7 million contract with the Royals renegotiated because it turned out to be such a steal for the club. Other deals of this kind that worked out favourably include Atlanta’s seven-year $58 million contract with shortstop Andrelton Simmons and Milwaukee’s eight-year $45 million deal with now disgruntled slugger Ryan Braun.
Not all pre-free agency deals work out. The Oakland Athletics inked pitcher Trevor Cahill to a five-year $30.5 million deal after a breakout year in 2010 that saw him win 18 games and post an impressive 2.97 ERA. Cahill was traded to the Diamondbacks in 2012 when his contract kicked in, and than after two OK seasons he imploded and was eventually traded to the Atlanta Braves. He’s currently getting paid $12 million this year to pitch poorly out of the Braves bullpen.
The Padres also struck out for the time being when they signed pitcher Cory Luebke to a four-year $12 million deal with two team options. Luebke looked great when he’s been healthy, but he hasn’t pitched since 2012. The Padres have shelled out over $8 million over the last two seasons, and should they buy Luebke’s remaining two team options, it will cost them more than two million.
While many long-term deals for younger players seem like they have value immediately, if they don’t work out it ultimately leaves the club on the hook for some serious money. Those deals are usually team friendly, but unless a team has unlimited resources like the Yankees are Dodgers, they can be ultimately be crippling when things don’t work out.
