Jon Heyman of SI.com ranked the top 10 baseball signings of all time.
4. Barry Bonds, Giants outfielder, 1993; $43.75 million, six years. The deal was a record at the time, but Bonds proved to be worth every penny, winning the NL MVP award in his debut season in San Francisco. Even before he and his head got so big, he was the best there was. He wound up staying 15 years, breaking baseball’s biggest record, making everyone a lot of money, and eventually upsetting enough folks that no one wanted to employ him. But that part came later. A lot later.
1. David Ortiz, Red Sox designated hitter, 2003; $1.25 million, one year. When Ortiz was signed just weeks before the start of spring training, newly hired and 29-year-old Red Sox GM Theo Epstein claimed that one day Ortiz could emerge as a key middle-of-the-order hitter. Some might have scoffed, but as it turns out, Ortiz has done much more than that, and is probably a Hall of Famer based only on the half a career he’s spent in Boston. Later, the Red Sox signed Ortiz to two more team-friendly deals (though not nearly this team friendly).
With what he’s meant to Boston over the years, it’s easy to forget that Ortiz once played for the Twins. And Heyman is right – Bonds was worth every penny for the Giants. While that pesky steroids thing turned out to be quite the issue, fans always packed the stands to see Bonds and Giants’ owner Peter McGowan reaped the benefits.
