Mariners fans experienced another failed experiment by Mastermind and GM Bill Bavasi on Sunday night, watching Carlos Silva get shelled by the Tigers for 7 ER in 2/3 of an inning. After receiving a 4 year, $48 million contract in December, Silva has been horrible recently. In his last six starts, Silva is 0-5 with an 11.00 ERA. Though he did show promise at the outset of the season, a player doesn't earn $14 million a year by showing potential. The thing is, all Silva has produced over his career has been potential and just as much disappointment. He has only had two winning seasons as a starter, and his last two years with the Minnesota Twins he had an ERA of 5.94 and 4.19 respectively. How does a player like this end up getting the second biggest free agent pitcher contract last offseason? Easy, Bill Bavasi. But Silva isn't the only one cashing in on Bavasi's shopping spree, overpaid players have littered the M's roster in recent years.
Ever since Bavasi entered the Mariners organization he has done nothing but overpaid for players who had marginal success on other clubs and bring in veteran players clearly past their prime. The list is endless, but to name a few:
Carl Everett: 1 yr, $4 million, batted .227 with 11 HR and 33 RBI
Jeff Weaver, 1 yr, $8.3 million, 7-13 with a 6.20 ERA, spending some time in the minor leagues
Jarrod Washburn, 4 yrs, $37.5 million, has posted back-to-back losing seasons
Scott Spiezio, 3 yrs, $9.15 million, batted .215 with a measly .288 On-base percentage
And the trophy winner: Richie Sexson, 4 yrs, $50 million, batted .205 with 21 HR and 63 RBI last year
Not only has Bavasi overpaid for players, but in creating a lineup with big name, overrated players, he's left the minor leagues with very little pitching and has traded big-name prospects like Adam Jones and established players like Carlos Guillen.
As teams like the Devil Rays and Marlins lead their respective divisions with payrolls 1/5 and 1/10 of the Mariners, it's clear that spending more money will not always translate into wins. If the Mariners are ever going to have a chance to compete, they need to stop signing players like Carlos Silva and Richie Sexson. And the best way to prevent this is get rid of the man responsible, and fire Bill Bavasi.
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