Atlanta Braves: 5 Worst Contracts In Recent Memory

Pitcher Kenshin Kawakami #11 of the Atlanta Braves. (Photo by Ronald C. Modra/Getty Images)

Atlanta Braves Sign Kenshin Kawakami

More recently, we think of Cole Hamels, but at least with Hamels all that was lost was the pro-rated amount of $20 million due to the shortened 2020, and he provided zero value, not negative.

This final spot was a toss-up between Kenshin Kawakami and Bartolo Colon. Colon had one of the biggest drop-offs in recent memory going from a 3 WAR season in 191.2 innings pitched for the Mets in 2016 to a -2.1 for the Braves in only 63 innings and ended up being dumped to the Twins at the trade deadline.

Because it was only half of a year, we will go with Kenshin Kawakami. At the time (2009), the signing was praised. There had been many successful signings from the Nippon Professional Baseball League in Japan and Kawakami was one of the best. He had their version of Cy Young (Eiji Sawamura Award) under his belt in 2004, MVP in 2004, and rookie of the year in 1998. He also had a no-hitter in 2002 and 6 All-Star selections.

The Braves signed Kawakami to a 3 year, $23 million deal and at first, he looked to have been a decent pickup. In 2009, he had a 3.86 ERA (107 ERA+), WHIP of 1.343, 6 strikeouts per 9 innings with a 1.84 strikeout to walk ratio.

He fell off quick in 2010 even having the exact same strikeout to walk ratio. His ERA spiked to 5.15 due to giving up more hits per 9 innings. He had a 2 WAR season in 2009 in 156.1 innings. In 2010 he had a -0.8 in only 87.1 innings. Remember WAR is an accumulative stat.

The Braves ended up regulating him to the bullpen and then demoting him to Triple-A. He ended up finishing his contract through 2012 in Triple-A and never saw the majors again.

Who comes to mind when you think of bad contracts? Comment below and point out who was missed!