Yesterday, I marveled at the 2 year, $2.2 million deal that Brian L. Hunter received from the Astros. Meanwhile, the Orioles were in the process of signing Marty Cordova to a 3-year, $9.1 million contract.

A former Rookie of the Year, Cordova's star has plummeted quickly as a result of a seemingly endless string of injuries. Although 2001 was a career year for Cordova, he still suffered from a number of small ailments to his wrist, lower leg, rib cage, and finger. Last season's problems were all minor, but it can be only a matter of time before the outfielder's properties as an accident magnet display themselves again. He was signed to a minor league contract for 2001 and now will receive over $3 million dollars a year.

Baltimore appears to have mounted its own crusade to overpay veteran players in order to make up for the low salaries that players must work at in their younger and normally more productive years. Cordova will have a difficult time maintaining, let alone improving upon, his 2001 numbers.

Assuming he holds up physically in a likely starting role, Cordova will not receive nearly as much lineup protection as he did in Cleveland. Due to the weaker Baltimore offense, his counting numbers will probably take a hit. His BB/K ratio did not support the BA he posted last season, so we can expect his average to return to its pre-2001 levels.

While he should hold on to the power he displayed in 2001, how many times have you witnessed a player's slugging numbers drop when he starts to struggle in other areas? Another cause for anxiety would be his late season wrist problems. Though I have no specific knowledge that the sprain isn't completely healed, wrist injuries can zap a player's power.

Despite all of these concerns, a healthy, motivated Cordova could impress Baltimore fans in 2002. He will be reunited with Terry Crowley, the hitting coach from his Twins' days. The size of the new contract has to be inspiring, and Orioles' fans are primed to support talent anywhere they can find it.

Beyond the ultimate success or failure of Cordova in Baltimore, the matter under review here is the historic lack of competence in the Orioles' front office. Within an article posted on the Orioles' official homepage entitled "Cordova Wants to Win", there is a quote from Baltimore's Vice President of Baseball Operations Syd Thrift. Allow me to walk you through my reactions to the quote as I first read it.

Thrift: "First of all, he hit .301 while with the Indians last year..."
My god, if they still use BA as the primary indication of a player's value, there really isn't any mystery left regarding the logic behind some of their brainless moves.

Thrift: "He had a high on-base percentage..."
Okay, well that's better. He's at least heard of OBP. I've been too quick to judge. There's hope. However, I couldn't remember being overly impressed by Cordova's OBP, so I went to check it out. Cordova's impressive OBP was .338. In my experience, that is on the low side of barely acceptable, which means Thrift might be aware of the statistic's existence but he doesn't really have a clue as to how to utilize it. But wait, there's more...

Thrift: "and he's just a good all-around player. Plus, there are tremendous intangibles..."
Is this guy reading straight out of a book entitledHow to Make a Sabermetrician Cringe?

The Baltimore Orioles are the definition of why money isn't the real problem in baseball, as well as a standing example of why many revenue and cost management plans should never be allowed to become more than theories. It doesn't matter how much money you have if you run an incompetent organization.

Elsewhere in baseball on Tuesday, the Chicago Cubs were busy re-signing Delino DeShields to a one-year, $1.25 million contract that contains performance incentives that could bring its total value up to $2.6 million. While the Cubs are not always picture-perfect examples of how to run a ball club, this is a commendable signing. By placing over half the value of the contract in incentives, the team has minimized the risk surrounding the signing of an older player with some declining productivity issues.

DeShields, who the Cubs first signed in July after he was released by Baltimore, is now in a position to fill a very specific need for Chicago. The club is unlikely to re-sign last year's second baseman Eric Young, but after Bobby Hill's unimpressive, unenthusiastic AFL performance they don't envision handing the prospect the starting 2B job. DeShields can play 2B full time until they are ready to bring up Hill, and the team won't have to worry about letting an extremely expensive player sit on the bench or block the younger player's advancement.

The Cubs appear to be attempting a similar incentive-based approach with outfielder Rondell White, albeit for slightly different reasons. White's time on the turf in Montreal took a toll on his body, making him dangerously fragile. This time the incentives would minimize the club's losses in case of a season-ending injury. Other clubs should be interested in Rondell, and if his agent can talk one of them into more guaranteed money, White may have to take it.

There is still uncertainty as to whether or not the Cubs will be able to re-sign Ricky Gutierrez. The shortstop wants a four-year deal but will probably settle for three, while Chicago has offered a two-year deal with a club option for a third season. Free agent shortstops aren't plentiful this year, so there will be some outside competition. However, if the Cubs don't re-sign Gutierrez, their starting middle infield might look more like what you would expect to see in the late innings when they have a good lead.

With only a few signing after a couple weeks of free agency, only the DeShields and Smoltz deals even appear to have some grounding in reason; DeShields inexpensively fills a hole for the Cubs and Smoltz should stay with the Braves after a very productive fourteen-year relationship. The other GMs appear lost in the contraction confusion, throwing money at lesser free agents instead of holding their cash until the impact players begin signing. Van Poppel and Cordova were available to every team two years ago, and clubs would be better off looking for similar free talent instead of overpaying for "proven veterans."