Now that my O's have locked up Chris "Crush" Davis to a mega , 7 year, and team-record $161M deal there are understandably a lot of opinions from fans, media, and those in and around the baseball industry. Is there a risk when you sign any player to a long-term deal like this at age 30 or later? Yes. Is it especially a risk when a team typically doesn't spend $ like this and can't afford for a lot of bad contracts, unlike teams like the Yanks, Dodgers, Red Sox, etc.? Yes. Do the O's also need pitching? Yes. Does Crush strike out a lot and go into prolonged slumps at times? Yes. Could it potentially hinder O's from making a lot of other significant deals over the years? Perhaps.
Here is my perspective. First off, I have always loved him as a person since coming to the O's via trade in 2011. He had to overcome a lot of adversity, criticism, and very lofty expectations to get another shot at the Big Leagues, after not living up to the hype in Texas while coming up with the Rangers. By all accounts, he seems to be very humble, doesn't complain, encourages teammates and works extremely hard. As a Christian, I also love how much he talks about The Lord and realizes who he lives for and where his strength to endure comes from.
After a solid 2012 campaign, where he was very instrumental in leading the O's back to the playoffs for the first time since 1997, came the breakout 2013 season. He started the season on an absolute tear, hitting HR's in the first 4 games, and setting the tone for his monster, team-record and MLB-leading 53 HR's, and near MVP season. Among many highlights from that season, was one of my personal favorite moments ever at an O's game: his dramatic 8th inning, go-ahead Grand Slam on Opening Day! It's like we all expected him to HR. The Yard was mostly standing and cheering in unison, just waiting for Crush to do it again for the 4th straight game and continue one of the greatest starts in MLB history. Right before his slam, I leaned over to my brother and said, "if he goes yard this place will go nuts!" And on cue, Crush responded in dramatic fashion. Yes, we went nuts.
2014 had some sweet highlights, including my personal favorite Crush moment from the season: his walk-off, pinch hit HR vs the White Sox. Joe Angel's call of "The Big Fella" was one of my personal favorites of his, ever.
Later that weekend at the annual autograph session for season ticket holders, he signed this picture for me that I had made from his dramatic walk off.
But most of the season was obviously a disappointing one in comparison to '13 as he slumped, struck out a lot, was also hurt (much more than we knew about at the time), and then of course, had the season ending adderall suspension, right before the playoffs began. Fans were torn on what to think of him.
Between his 2014 slump and suspension, and then sub-par play for the earlier part of 2015, I was torn and started to lean more towards letting him go after the season when he hit free agency if this kind of play continued. I thought it may be a given, not only that the O's wouldn't be able to keep him, but that they probably shouldn't. But then, something clicked near mid season and Crush went on an absolute tear down the stretch. A tear very similar to his breakout year of 2013. I was elated. Crush was back! He was brimming with confidence, once again hitting HR's all over the yard in massive binges, sometimes even as if on cue and expected like in '13, in walk-off fashion to win games. Below is the video I took of his walk-off vs the A's. Expecting it, and he delivered!
And on top of this, he was even robbed of a MLB leading 5-6 HR's!
As the season started to wind down, my emphatic conclusion was that, yes even though there are the risks mentioned to bring Crush back, these are risks worth taking, and that it is absolutely the move my O's needed to make. Why?
- He's proven to be very durable physically and is an athletic freak who works out very hard to stay in top shape.
- He's extremely versatile, and able to play several positions well- including pitcher in a pinch! I would also argue he is gold glove caliber at 1B.
- He's got good speed and runs very well, especially for a guy his size.
- He's a great clubhouse guy and well-respected teammate.
Crush and Jonesy bromance.
- He wanted to be here.
- He's very involved in the community.
- As mentioned above, by all accounts, he seems to be humble and have solid character traits.
- Signing Crush sends a message in the organization (to current players, and potential free agents) that ownership will spend to reward and keep players when needed to remain competitive.
- Signing Crush sends a message to fans that ownership is serious about being competitive.
- Signing Crush is a good PR move with a very popular and marketable player.
- Though some wonder if O's paid too much or were bidding against ourselves, consider this:
A. We don't know if others were heavily in or not.
B. O's made a strong offer & stayed the course to show Crush our desire.
C. We don't know if other teams may have swooped in (change of philosophy or sudden injury need) at the 11th hour.
D. If O's didn't make a strong offer, he likely would have taken a 1 year deal (perhaps from someone else), and likely gotten a lot more than our offer- especially if he balls out again- when other big spenders enter the market next year.
Yes, the O's played this right, as Crush settled for closer to our original offer (7-$154) vs Boras demand of 8-$200M.
- Some of the $ is deferred
- It keeps O's a lot more of a bona-fide contender this year.
- And oh yeah, he can flat out CRUSH and lead the MLB in HR's, with the mentioned team-record 53 HR's in '13, and then 47 in '15, while carrying the team on his massive shoulders for stretches.
So yes, at the beginning of the offseason I was- and remained more optimistic and excited about this deal if it came together. Hats off to Peter Angelos & the front office for making it happen.
Crush is back!
Go O's!