"A's wonder why they suck"; "Even the A's are outspending the White Sox" - Fans surprised as Athletics sign Luis Severino to record franchise contract
The Oakland Athletics signed Luis Severino to a three-year deal worth $67 million that set the franchise record for the highest guaranteed fee. The peculiarity and the timing of the deal have shocked the majority of the baseball community.
It was already a shock when the New York Mets backed Severino to be part of their rotation last season. However, Carlos Mendoza's management team seemed to have fixed Sevy, whose 11-7, 3.91 ERA record in 2024 was enough to get a hefty contract. The starter had been injury prone previously and could play 45 games between 2019 and 2023.
Severino had also rejected a qualifying offer of $21.05 million from the Mets, who had wanted to keep him in their pitching staff. As reported first by ESPN's Jeff Passan, the 30-year-old signed the biggest deal in A's history. His contract includes an opt-out in the second year but also pushes his career earnings over $130 million.
Fans were quite surprised as they took to X (formerly Twitter) to voice their opinions.
"A's wonder why they suck. Terrible contract," a fan opined.
"Even the A’s are outspending the White Sox. I’m done," a fan wrote.
"I had to check 4 times that you actually typed the A's," another fan wrote.
"His contract is worth more than the A's franchise," someone remarked.
Fans brought out their anger towards Athletics owner John Fisher, who for the longest time chose to not invest in players while the franchise was located in Oakland. Now with the relocation to Las Vegas in place, the A's went big on a player.
"Words can't even describe how much hate i have for john fisher," a fan said.
"Imagine John Fisher all the sudden becomes Steve Cohen. He'd never be allowed NEAR Oakland without getting murdered," a user said.
A's break long standing franchise spending drought
The last time the Athletics had signed a player close to the amount guaranteed towards Severino was back in 2005 when the club signed Eric Chavez to a $66 million contract. Nineteen years was the longest drought in the history of the MLB for any team to offer its largest contract.
Despite their record, the A's are still bottom dwellers when it comes to spending. They are one of only two clubs to have never spent in excess of $75 million for a particular player, the other team being the Chicago White Sox.
They would hope that choosing to gamble on a player like Luis Severino works out in their favor.