In 2016, an ace pitcher and 9-year veteran Johnny Cueto signed a 6-year, $130 Million Dollar contract with the San Francisco Giants. The first season was an overwhelming success; he won 18 games with a 2.79, striking out 198 batters.
Unfortunately for the Giants, this was only one of a six-year contract.
In the second season, Cueto went 8-8 with a 4.52 ERA. The last four seasons’ injuries combined with ineffectiveness ruled the day. He never won more than 7 games in a season. In year three he did have a 3.23 ERA but only pitched in 9 games. After that, his ERA was over 5.00 twice and 4.08 the other year. Let me summarize: 6 seasons: after year 1, a total of 21 wins in 5 seasons (4 per year). He only pitched over 100 innings once. It was not a well-invested $130 million.
