Question: I don’t understand why Corbin Burnes was such a hot commodity. His record with the Orioles was 15-9. So that was only a net gain of six games. Maybe you can explain why he is worth signing for so much money. Thank you. From: Richard Poffel
Answer: Richard, Burnes’ ERA of 2.92 was the seventh best of major league starters, and the lowest of any free-agent starter. While contemporary baseball executives don’t pay much attention to starting pitchers’ wins, those 15 wins were the most for any free-agent starter.
He’s durable. He made 32 starts, tied for the most of any free-agent starter, and 22 of those 32 were quality starts, where he allowed three or fewer earned runs in six or more innings.
Burnes has thrown more than 190 innings in three straight seasons, and that’s important these days.
His .625 winning percentage last season equals his lifetime winning percentage and isn’t far off from the best two starters in Orioles’ franchise history, Jim Palmer and Mike Mussina, who both had .638 winning percentages.
Because starting pitching is at such a premium, starters like Burnes who have demonstrated consistency over multiple years are highly valued.
Question: I have a couple questions about deferred income. When you report the total payroll for the Orioles, or any other team, does the deferred income paid that year get included in that total? And in the case of contracts where large amounts of income are deferred is that deferred income included in the total income that is subject to the luxury tax that year? From: Dick Neff
Answer: Dick, the total payroll reported for the Orioles and other teams does not include deferred income.
The largest amount in a deferred contract is the $680 million that Shohei Ohtani has deferred from the 10-year, $700 million contract he signed with the Dodgers.
The contract has a present-day value of about $460 million, and counts about $46 million a year on the Dodgers’ payroll for those 10 years.
Most weekdays, I’ll be answering at least one Orioles question. If you’d like to submit a question, send it to: Rich@BaltimoreBaseball.com. Questions may be edited for clarity, length and style.