Miguel Cabrera of the Detroit Tigers has one of the worst MLB contracts
Tigers fans won’t like this one, but paying Miguel Cabrera $32 million this season after coming off a campaign where he posted an OPS+ of 83 and slashed just .254/.305/.317 is a tough pill to swallow.
Absolutely, Cabrera should be celebrated for his long and illustrious MLB career, including passing the 3,000-hit mark last season, but $32 million? That seems a little pricey for a player who will turn 40 on April 18.
Last season, despite the heroics, Cabrera posted minus-1.0 bWAR and saw many of his advanced numbers drop to career-lows, including an average exit velocity that didn’t even hit 90 mph (89.9). It continued a decline for Cabrera, who posted triple-digits in OPS+ in a full season just once since the 2016 season concluded.
This will be the last season for Cabrera in uniform, setting the stage for him to head to Cooperstown and likely play a role with the franchise in seasons to come.
Miguel Cabrera also said he'd like to stay involved in Tigers organization and help young players once his own playing career is over.
— Jason Beck (@beckjason) November 28, 2022
"I have time to decide, but my goal is to stay in baseball, try to help, because I love baseball," he said.
Here’s hoping Cabrera’s final season exceeds expectations, but it will be hard to get value that equals the contract out of however many at-bats he puts together in 2023.