Have these free-agent signings been worth their deals? Ranking MLB’s new faces in new places

05/23/2022

Covers MLB for ESPN.com
Former deputy editor of Page 2
Been with ESPN.com since 1995

This past offseason was the great shortstop extravaganza: Five All-Star shortstops hit free agency in the prime of their careers. Despite the lockout that put a winter freeze on spending, they all received deals worth more than $100 million, part of the record-breaking haul of some $3.3 billion that teams spent in free agency.

That being said, this is a little awkward.

For the most part, it has not gone well for the five players — Corey Seager, Marcus Semien, Javier Baez, Trevor Story and Carlos Correa — although Seager has hit better in May and Story just raised his OPS 135 points over the weekend by homering five times in a four-game series against the Mariners. In about a full season’s worth of 671 at-bats, the group is hitting a combined .224 with 20 home runs and 73 RBIs. In 2021, prorated over the same number of at-bats, the group averaged .271 with 37 home runs and 107 RBIs.

So they’re hitting for a lower average, with much less power, and driving in fewer runs. Semien has been the big disappointment. Moved to second base to accommodate Seager to form a new double-play combination for the Rangers, he has remarkably yet to hit a home run in 154 at-bats after slugging 45 last season for the Blue Jays.

Even after adjusting for the overall decline in offense across the league, all five players are hitting below their career norms.

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