Orioles reportedly offer Chris Davis $150 million deal

Davis is clearly a coveted free agent. The Nationals looked like they were about to sign Leake on Wednesday but are now pursuing other options. Where last year they weren’t in the mix for much of anything and were openly proclaiming they’d probably only go home with a Rule 5 pick, this year finds them riding on a steady stream of rumors. So that’s one put to bed.

Since joining the Orioles in 2011 via a trade with the Texas Rangers, Chris Davis has hit 161 home runs and driven in 425 runs.

Earlier this morning, Ken Rosenthal reported that not only were the Orioles still interested in bringing back Chris Davis, but also that they had increased their offer to the free agent slugger. However, Davis’ agent Scott Boras said the report of the $150 million offer was inaccurate. The latter total placed him above any other power hitter on the free agent market. That could change-so could Davis’s demands-as the demand for him crystallizes, but there doesn’t yet seem to be a market for him beyond returning to the O’s. Although the team has been vocal about the need to add a left-handed bat after the acquisition of Mark Trumbo from the Seattle Mariners, Upton would fit well in the middle of an already potent lineup. CarGo will make $17 million next season and $20 million in 2017. Plenty of time and room for another team to jump in there and snatch away MLB’s most eligible slugger, and I’m not so certain the Orioles would be too upset if that happened. He led the league in home runs previous year with 47 and was second in the American League with 117 RBI, behind only the A.L. MVP Josh Donaldson. So far, the O’s aren’t biting about that.

In the cases when the Orioles have been willing to spend, it has been on known commodities. The difference this year is that at least we know they have a lot more irons in the fire.