Call to the pen
Fansided

Baltimore Orioles Chris Davis headlines 2018 performances that won’t repeat

By Joey Brasch

LOS ANGELES, CA - OCTOBER 28: Mookie Betts #50 of the Boston Red Sox celebrates with the World Series trophy after his team's 5-1 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game Five of the 2018 World Series at Dodger Stadium on October 28, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - OCTOBER 28: Mookie Betts #50 of the Boston Red Sox celebrates with the World Series trophy after his team's 5-1 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game Five of the 2018 World Series at Dodger Stadium on October 28, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) /
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Baltimore Orioles
BALTIMORE, MD – AUGUST 11: Chris Davis #19 of the Baltimore Orioles is hit by a pitch thrown by Hector Velazquez #76 of the Boston Red Sox (not pictured) in the second inning during game two of a doubleheader at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on August 11, 2018 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images) /

Davis dumps

Chris Davis was almost incomprehensibly bad in 2018. He posted a -3.1 Fangraphs WAR, tied with 1997 Jose Guillen for the worst mark for a qualified hitter since World War II.

Needless to say, the Baltimore Orioles expected a much different performance when they signed him to a $161 million contract before the 2016 season. Expectations were lowered after his poor 2017 season, but nobody could possibly predict the historically horrible season that Davis had in 2018.

One of the reasons that Davis was able to qualify as a hitter was because, like Davis, the Orioles were historically awful in 2018, losing 115 games and having the ability to let Davis try to play through his struggles at the plate. The 2019 Orioles might improve somewhat in 2019, but it is extremely unlikely that they are actually able to compete, especially in the powerhouse AL East, meaning they can afford to keep playing Davis and hope he will improve.

Davis is only 32, and he’s only three years removed from being a truly elite hitter. There’s a chance that Chris Davis is never a great player again, or for that matter, a good player. But there’s also a huge chance that Davis is not the worst player ever, which is what he looked like in 2018. Look for him to improve significantly in 2019, even if he still isn’t that good.

Next. Christmas list for each AL East team. dark

What do you think? Would you put the Baltimore Orioles slugger as a definite bounceback

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