Phillies: Ranking the 10 worst contracts in the NL East right now
The NL East has some of the worst contracts in baseball.
When thinking about contracts in the NL East, the Atlanta Braves and the Philadelphia Phillies are two teams that come to mind.
Atlanta has some of the best contracts not only in the division but in all of baseball with virtually all of their core locked up for many years to come. The Phillies, on the other hand, did a lot of their work in free agency which means they spent lots of money to bring in some of their best players. While that's not always a bad thing, especially if you win, these contracts often don't end well.
The list of the worst contracts in this division ranges from players on very large free agent contracts to a player who isn't even in the majors anymore.
10) Worst contracts in the NL East: Carlos Carrasco of the New York Mets
Most of what goes into what decides whether a contract is good or not is the length of the deal. Carlos Carrasco being on the last year of his deal puts him at the end of the list, but him being one of the worst pitchers in the majors this season still makes him have one of the worst contracts in the division.
Carrasco had his $14 million club option picked up this offseason in a move that felt like a no-brainer at the time. He's always been a reliable starter and even as he's aged, he had a good year in 2022. This season has been a total 180.
In his 19 starts this season, Carrasco has a 6.42 ERA in 88.1 innings of work. Carrasco's ridiculously-high ERA is the fourth worst in all of baseball for pitchers with at least 80 innings this season. His hits are up, walks are up, home runs are up, and strikeouts are down. Not a great combination.
9) Worst contracts in the NL East: Marcell Ozuna of the Atlanta Braves
The contracts the Atlanta Braves on their books are so insanely team-friendly it was shocking to even find one you can possibly think of as somewhat bad. All of Matt Olson, Ronald Acuna Jr., Austin Riley, Ozzie Albies, Michael Harris, Sean Murphy, and Spencer Strider are locked up on long-term deals that can all be viewed as incredibly team-friendly.
Marcell Ozuna began his Braves career in the shortened 2020 season, and his sixth-place finish in the NL MVP balloting earned him a four-year contract that offseason worth $65 million. The Braves kept a player in town who they thought would continue to be a key piece of their lineup, but most of the contract has had more bad than good.
Ozuna's first half of the deal will be remembered mostly for off-the-field issues. He also had a .675 OPS in that time, and a rough beginning to this season put him on the chopping block. The Braves stuck with him after a 5-for-59 month of April, and are seeing Ozuna finally start hitting for them.
The 32-year-old has been worth the hefty price tag for this season, but is set to make another $16 million next season along with a club option for the 2025 campaign. His recent hot stretch makes it more palatable, but that's a good amount of money for a DH who's been basically a league-average hitter for the duration of the contract.
8) Worst contracts in the NL East: J.T. Realmuto of the Philadelphia Phillies
After establishing himself as the best catcher in baseball, J.T. Realmuto inked a five-year deal worth $115.5 million to remain in Philadelphia following the 2020 season. Realmuto made $20 million in the first year of the deal, and is owed $23.5 million annually for the duration of the contract which runs through the 2025 campaign.
Realmuto was well worth the hefty price tag in the first two years of the deal, particularly the second year, which saw him finish seventh in the NL MVP balloting. While he's been good this season, he hasn't been quite as good as Phillies fans have come to expect.
The Phillies backstop is slashing .253/.314/.462 with 15 home runs and 50 RBI. A .776 OPS isn't awful, especially for a catcher, but it'd be Realmuto's lowest mark since 2016.
In addition to his slightly underwhelming bat, Realmuto has taken a bit of a step back in the field as well. He ranks in the 34th percentile in pitch framing according to baseball savant after ranking in the 61st percentile in 2022. From above-average to below-average. Furthermore, he has been worth -4 DRS after picking up 11 DRS last season.
Realmuto is still a top-five catcher in the game, but has declined across the board this season. He's 32-years-old and still has two more expensive years to go. The contract isn't an albatross, but doesn't look great, either.
7) Worst contracts in the NL East: Kyle Schwarber of the Philadelphia Phillies
Kyle Schwarber signed a four-year deal worth $79 million entering the 2022 season. His first year in Philadelphia went about as well as the Phillies could've hoped. He led the NL with 46 home runs, was an all-star took home a Silver Slugger, and even received some MVP votes. Then, of course, he came up big in the postseason as well. This season hasn't quite been the same.
Schwarber is still hitting for power as he has 33 this season which is good for fourth in the NL and tied for fifth in the majors, and he's driven in 80 runs while hitting primarily out of the leadoff spot. Schwarber is also drawing walks, as he's second in the majors with 94 of those. The issue with Schwarber is just about everything else.
He's slashing .183/.327/.434 with those 33 round trippers and 80 RBI. Batting average isn't quite as valued as it used to be, but you don't want someone making $20 million annually hitting under .200. Schwarber rarely gets hits, and he leads the NL with 163 strikeouts. Overall, he's been a tick above average this season, recording a 106 OPS+.
The Bryce Harper injury forced Schwarber into left field for most of last season and this season, and the Phillies are seeing why he was signed to be a DH. He's been worth a whopping -17 DRS this season and is in the first percentile in outs above average. He's quite easily the worst defensive outfielder in the game.
Schwarber being a big negative in the field while being barely above average at the dish has him worth -0.1 fWAR for this season. While I don't believe he's been a negative-value player personally, he hasn't been worth the $20 million he's making. He has another two years when he will make $20 million in each of those. Lots of good moments have come from this Schwarber contract already, but the longer it goes, the worse it looks. Hopefully he has a big postseason, because ultimately, that's all that matters for this group.
6) Worst contracts in the NL East: Starling Marte of the New York Mets
Starling Marte signed in the same offseason as Schwarber for a similar deal. The outfielder got four years and $78 million from the Mets, and like Schwarber, played a huge role in what was a successful year for New York overall. Marte was an all-star, and received MVP votes. Also like Schwarber, this year has been a different story.
The Mets outfielder is slashing .248/.301/.324 with five home runs and 28 RBI. He has stolen 24 bases which is a solid amount in just 86 games, but outside of that, his overall production is down. Even his defense has taken a large step back.
Marte has dealt with injuries, notably groin issues which are concerning considering the fact that he had double groin surgery this past offseason to help with issues that were nagging him last year. It's possible that his .625 OPS season (lower than Kody Clemens) has to do with that, but he's also 35 years old. Next season will be the true test for that.
Schwarber has found a way even amidst his own struggles to be a decent player. Marte completely fell off a cliff production-wise this season. He's set to make $19.5 million for each of the next two seasons which is slightly less than Schwarber, but their production this season can't even be compared.
5) Worst contracts in the NL East: Trea Turner of the Philadelphia Phillies
You knew he'd be on here, but I have no idea where Trea Turner should be ranked. On one hand, his first season in Philadelphia has been extremely disappointing, and if this is the player he will be as a Phillie, he should be higher on this list.
On the other hand, Turner has begun turning his season around somewhat, and if he can get back to his superstar form, he wouldn't be on this list at all. Francisco Lindor is awfully similar in that he had a brutal first year in New York but turned things around and is back to who he had always been in Cleveland. The simple solution to me is to just rank him in the middle, so here he is, at number five on this list.
Turner's first season in Philadelphia hasn't gone the way anyone would've liked. He's slashed .251/.303/.403 with 14 home runs and 46 RBI this season. He has an 89 WRC+ which is good for 13th among 20 qualified shortstops. He's behind Anthony Volpe, a rookie who has struggled to hit above .200 this season.
He's been worth 1.9 fWAR which is good for 10th among qualified shortstops. He ranks behind Orlando Arcia who missed time this season and is making just $2.3 million For a guy on a $300 million deal, that's not what the Phillies paid for.
To his credit, Turner has played virtually every day and even leads the league in at-bats, but if that's what you have to hang your hat on, it's just not great. Turner has played better of late, and will hopefully find a way to turn things around, but at 30 years old with another ten years after this one at over $27 million per, the contract looks horrible right now.
4) Worst contracts in the NL East: Patrick Corbin of the Washington Nationals
Patrick Corbin signed a massive six-year deal worth $140 million to join Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg in a loaded 2019 Nationals rotation, despite the Phillies' interest. In the first year of the deal it paid off tremendously as Corbin had a really strong regular season and was instrumental in their run through the postseason. He delivered three scoreless innings in Washington's Game 7 victory over the Astros to deliver their first championship.
Since that first season, the contract has been an absolute disaster. From 2020-2022, Corbin had a 5.82 ERA in 73 starts. That is, obviously, horrific. This season has been a bit better as his ERA sits at 4.71 through 25 starts this season, but celebrating a below-average season for a pitcher making $140 million isn't something Nats fans envisioned having to do.
The 34-year-old has one more year remaining on his deal after this one, as he's set to make $35 million in 2024. He'll be one of the highest-paid pitchers in baseball to be one of the worst pitchers in baseball. Washington likely won't be planning on competing anyway so it's not the worst thing in the world, but again, not what they had in mind when Corbin signed the deal.
One positive from this deal, similar to Turner, is amidst his struggles he's taken the ball every fifth day. Corbin has given D.C. everything he has, which is absolutely something fans can be proud of. They just wish he was much better on the mound.
3) Worst contracts in the NL East: Scott Kingery of the Philadelphia Phillies
This is a contract that many fans, including myself, forget about. It's easy to forget about the Scott Kingery deal because he isn't even in the majors anymore. In fact, he's spent most of this contract away from the MLB team.
Kingery inked a six-year deal with the Phillies before even appearing in a MLB game. The idea behind doing this is signing a player the organization thinks would be good to a contract that turns out being team-friendly in the latter half. Kingery had those six years of team control already built in, but signing that deal guaranteed himself some money while giving the Phillies the chance to get him for much cheaper than the cost would've been if he broke out. The deal was only worth $24 million.
Kingery's rookie year was underwhelming but then he looked like he was developing in 2019. He hit 19 home runs and had a .788 OPS with a 101 OPS+. Unfortunately, that season was his only one of being a semi-productive player. Overall, he's slashed .229/.280/.667 with the Phillies with 30 home runs and 96 RBI across parts of five years. He's played just 16 games since 2020, and 56 games since that breakout year as he's spent most of his time in the minors. He appeared in one game last season and did not record a single plate appearance.
Kingery got to achieve his dream and play in the majors, but this was undoubtedly a disappointment for all involved. Kingery is making $8 million this year to put up a .765 OPS in the minors. Just a complete whiff.
2) Worst contracts in the NL East: Avisail Garcia of the Miami Marlins
The Miami Marlins are a team that rarely spends big on any free agent. The Marlins are a team that tries to build from within, so whenever they do splurge on a free agent, it has to work out. The Marlins have benefitted greatly from one of their big signings of the last couple years with Jorge Soler having a fantastic year this season, but a guy they signed with him, Avisail Garcia, has struggled for a second consecutive year.
After a terrific year in Milwaukee, the Marlins splurged on Avisail Garcia and gave him a four-year deal worth $53 million. He makes $12 million annually and has a club option worth another $12 million for the 2026 season with a $5 million buyout.
Garcia's first year was a disaster as he had a .582 OPS and a 66 OPS+ while being limited to 98 games due to injury. This season has been even worse. He's played in just 35 games and is slashing .190/.248/.324 with three home runs and 11 RBI. He has a 55 OPS+ and he's lost his every day spot.
The Marlins are a team that was, and still is, starved for power. Garcia launched 29 home runs in 2021 for Milwaukee. Even if they got 20-25, the Fish would've been more than satisfied. Garcia has combined to hit 11 in his first two years in Miami.
The contract might not be too detrimental for teams like the Phillies and Mets, but Garcia's contract with the Marlins might rob them of the opportunity to add a legitimate power bat to put in the middle of their lineup.
1) Worst contracts in the NL East: Stephen Strasburg of the Washington Nationals
Nobody played a bigger role in getting the Nationals their first World Series title than Stephen Strasburg. The former first overall pick of the Nationals was the World Series MVP in that 2019 season to help deliver them that elusive ring.
Strasburg was rewarded for his efforts, with a seven-year deal worth $245 million. The Phillies were even reportedly considering him. Unfortunately, he's rarely seen the field since signing the deal, and there's no way of knowing if he'll ever make another start for Washington as he's dealing with injury problems.
Strasburg has made eight starts since signing this contract, posting a 6.89 ERA in 31.1 innings pitched. His most recent start came in June of 2022 when he allowed seven runs in 4.2 innings pitched in a loss against the Marlins. That was his only appearance of that season.
The Nationals had a choice to keep one of Strasburg or Anthony Rendon. After watching this Rendon contract play out, it's hard to believe Washington made the wrong decision, but it's certainly looking that way.
Strasburg did deliver them the World Series, but that was before this contract was signed. This is, without a doubt, the worst contract in all of baseball. Not just the NL East.