Club Seat’s Top 5 Overpaid MLB Players (’10 Season)

Now that the 2010 season has officially come to a close and we congratulate the San Francisco Giants on their World Series win, it’s time for our yearly list of infamy. These have become somewhat of a tradition seeing that this makes the fourth to be posted. As always, you won’t see anyone here that made last year’s overpaid list.

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5. Alex Rodriguez – 3B – Yankees: $33,000,000

A-Rod’s paycheck has been a topic of discussion for years but I never paid it any mind. So what if his contract was a little extreme, he was the best player in the game year after year. However, that isn’t the case anymore and with that said, $63,218 an at-bat and $240,875 a game is officially outdated. The 35-year-old A-Rod hit a career low .270 this season and hasn’t played in 140 games since 2007. Don’t get me wrong, 30 and 100 is nice, but not at that price tag and not with what we witness from A-Rod each October (he hit .219 with 0 home runs during this postseason). I’m sure the Yanks won’t mind the $174 million to be paid over the next 7 years, though, ending when Rodriguez is 42.

• Who he made more than: Everyone in baseball and nearly the entire Pittsburgh Pirates team combined

4. Travis Hafner – DH – Indians: $11,500,000

I bet the Indians are pretty upset that they managed to trade just about every good piece they had, yet got stuck with Pronk and his hefty salary. After four straight years of at least 24 and 100 from 2004-2007, Hafner hasn’t been able to hit a beach ball or stay healthy since. The best he could manage was 16 and 49 a couple seasons ago. How’s that for your DH?

• Who he made more than: Vladimir Guerrero

3. Oliver Perez – SP – Mets: $12,000,000

What will 0-5 with a 6.80 ERA get you? $12 million from the Mets of course. After going 3-4 with a 6.82 ERA last year, Perez thought why not try to duplicate those numbers again the next? But wait! The fun doesn’t stop here – he’s still due another $12 mil next year! Money well spent, New York.

• Who he made more than: Ubaldo Jimenez, Tim Hudson, Tim Lincecum

2. Milton Bradley – OF – Mariners: $11,000,000

Milton Milton Milton. If you would only shut your mouth and realize that the very people you hate are the ones that make you one of the league’s highest paid, your life, and probably ours, would be much better. Instead, you start nonsense wherever you go, as if hitting .205 and playing in 73 games gives you any right. What I don’t understand is how you got paid in the first place. You’ve never hit more than 22 homers in a season or drove in 100 runs. I don’t know, maybe the Cubs had something to do with it…

P.S.

I’m planning to rob you sometime in the near future since you’re due another $12 million next year.

• Who he made more than: Josh Hamilton, Carl Crawford, Jayson Werth

1. Barry Zito – SP – Giants: $18,500,000

I refused to put him on last year’s list since he posted a 2.83 ERA after the break, but the time has now come, Mr. Zito. After all, I think four years of wiping your bum and blowing your nose with the Giants money makes you well qualified. He again lost more games than he won this season (fourth straight year doing that might I add), but the dagger here was that he didn’t even make the team’s postseason roster! 21-year-old Madison Bumgarner did all the starting (how could he not with a name like that) and Zito wasn’t even allowed to pitch an inning in a mop-up role. Don’t you dare wear that World Series ring, Barry!

• Who he made more than: Adam Wainwright, Roy Halladay, Felix Hernandez