A closer look at Chris Davis and whether the Orioles can re-sign him

Chris Davis is clearly the big fish in the Orioles' pending free agent pond. But he's not the only one, and whether they do re-sign him and for how much could impact other things that happen for the club this winter. The next few months seem critical for the Orioles.

But let's start with this basic question: What is the price tag for Davis? Well, that is in the eye of the beholder. Is a six-year deal worth $150 million with an average annual value of $25 million enough to get it done? Will it take even more? How far should the Orioles go here?

Since 2012, Davis ranks first in the major leagues in homers and fourth in RBIs. We don't need any sabermetric or advanced stats to tell us his run production numbers are among the best in the game.

MLB home run leaders since 2012:
159 - Chris Davis
151 - Edwin Encarnacion
135 - Nelson Cruz
134 - Mike Trout
131 - Miguel Cabrera
130 - Jose Bautista

Cabrera (461) is the big league RBI leader since 2012, with Encarnacion second at 423, Adrian Gonzalez third at 414 and Davis fourth at 412. Davis ranks ninth in slugging (.533) and 15th in OPS (.876) since the start of the 2012 season.

Orioles manager Buck Showalter made an interesting comment Monday when a reporter pointed out the sense that many O's fans badly want to see Davis re-signed:

"You know there were times this year when people wouldn't have felt that way," Showalter said.

That is clearly true. Read about any blog I wrote on Davis in the first few months and check out some of the comments. In fact, here is one from May 9.

It started out this way:

Chris Davis has been striking out a lot. Anyone notice that? Does it come up much?

Davis has become the whipping boy for some of you and the guy to blame whenever the Orioles do not score many runs. The more he strikes out, the more venom and snark come with the comments.

Some just want him gone and are ready to drive him to the airport.

To that last group and those that focus only on the strikeouts, I say this: Production-wise, Davis is having his second-best season as an Oriole so far and some of you are missing it.

Well, as the man said, now we know the rest of the story. Who wants him gone now? Anyone worked up now that he led the majors in strikeouts? Yeah, didn't think so.

Now we hear comments like this on sports radio: "If the Orioles don't re-sign Davis, I am never going to another game." That is quite a change. But here are some questions facing the Orioles in the matter of Davis:

* If they sign him to a huge contract, does that mean they won't have enough left to add to the pitching staff?

* If they tie up a lot of future dollars in Davis, what does that mean for a possible contract extension for Manny Machado?

* What if they sign Davis to a huge deal and then his performance falls off like it did in 2014?

Davis has the look of a free agent that could break the bank. He will play all of next season at 30, so he is still in his prime years. He is an above-average defender and one that can play corner infield or outfield. He is athletic. He is good in the clubhouse and, yep, he is one of the premier power hitters in the sport.

Some team will pay him big dollars for all of that. Will that team be the Orioles?