Orioles first baseman Chris Davis, once the most feared hitter in baseball only to fall to one of the worst of all-time, has announced his retirement from baseball.
Davis released the following statement which was shared by the team on Twitter:
After an extended time dealing with my injury and recent hip surgery, I informed the Orioles about my decision to retire effective today. I want to thank the Orioles partnership, led by the Angelos family, the Orioles organization, my teammates and coaches. The University of Maryland Children's Hospital with whom I will continue to be involved following my retirement and, of course, Birdland. Thank you all for the many memories that I will cherish forever. Sincerely, CD.
Davis had one year left on his contract, a 7-year, $161M deal. The contract is the highest ever paid by the organization and is considered by many to be one of the worst sports contracts ever made. It's unclear exactly how much money Davis is still owed by the team since his contract was restructured at some point, but it is believed that the team no longer will fulfill the original terms of the contract signed in 2016.
The Orioles signed Davis to the lucrative contract after four consecutive seasons of hitting at least 26 home runs but his production fell off a cliff afterwards. From 2016 to 2020, his batting averages plummeted to .221, .215, .168, .179 and .115.
Davis played 1,1151 games across 10 seasons with the Orioles and holds the franchise record for most home runs in a single season when he hit 53 in 2013. But he also holds the MLB record for the worst single season batting average when he hit .168 in 2018.
His last game was September 11, 2020.