What a joke? The Braves paid the left-hander $48.5 million over six seasons, during which he made 85 starts and went 35-24 with a 4.10 ERA in 509 2/3 innings.

That works out to about $570,000 per start, $1.39 million per win, or $95,160 per inning, although insurance paid portions of his salary while he was on the disabled list.

Hampton made $78.5 million during that six-year stretch, the rest paid by the Colorado Rockies and Florida Marlins as part of the three-team trade that brought him to Atlanta in November 2002.

He signed a then-record eight-year, $121 million contract with Colorado before the 2001 season, and was traded after two disappointing seasons.

After going 63-31 with a 3.30 ERA in 133 starts over the four seasons before he signed the huge contract, Hampton went 56-52 with a 4.81 ERA in 147 starts during the eight-year deal.

Braves are desperate for starting pitching, but he rejects their higher offer to be closer to home. If someone had paid me 50 million dollars and I was hurt the whole time, I would feel obligated to that team.

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