Braves were wise to avoid these big-ticket free agents

Many of the big-ticket free agents haven’t lived up to their contracts this offseason, including the Braves‘ only free agent addition in Jurickson Profar, but there are many others that Atlanta fans were clamoring for that are off to very slow starts.

Profar played four games for the Braves before he was popped for using PEDs, and just like that, Atlanta’s $42 million investment took a dive, but it could’ve been worse. For every contract like Max Fried or Alex Bregman that the Yankees and Red Sox feel great about, there are more that will sour.

For instance, one of the Braves’ most glaring needs since Dansby Swanson left in free agency was thought to be a perfect reason to target Willy Adames, who eventually inked a seven-year, $182 million deal with the Giants.

In the loaded NL West, the Giants sit in third place with a 25-18 record, despite their big ticket free agent playing well below expectations. Adames is hitting .225 with a .671 OPS, which is 6% below league average, culminating in a 0.2 bWAR.

Similarly, the Braves needed outfield help, and while Jurickson Profar’s deal looks bad right now, Anthony Santander is looking worse. The veteran slugger inked a five-year, $92.5 million deal with the Blue Jays but is hitting below the Mendoza Line with an OPS+ that is 30% below league average. Because of his poor defense, that’s culminated into a -0.5 bWAR.

The Dodgers are even feeling the effects after committing $182 million to Blake Snell, who only made two starts before he went onto the injured list with a shoulder injury, and that doesn’t even consider the possibility of Tyler Glasnow also missing more time with his own injuries.

Hell, even Juan Soto hasn’t lived up to expectations. Let’s not act like the Mets superstar is underperforming as badly as any of the other big-ticket free agents. He owns a 144 OPS+ this season, but his OPS and slugging percentage is more than 100 points lower compared to his career average. That’s not exactly what the Braves’ rivals thought they were getting after signing him to a $765 million contract.

The Braves were never going to sign Soto, but there were plenty of Atlanta fans pounding the table for Adames and Santander.