Agent Scott Boras is in what is becoming a familiar place as spring training gets closer.
Top free agents — first baseman Pete Alonso and third baseman Alex Bregman — remain unsigned. Alonso and the Mets are essentially in a game of financial chicken, having reportedly exchanged three-year offers. Bregman reportedly has a standing six-year, $156 million offer from the Astros on the table but is looking for a larger contract.
Boras found himself in a similar situation with other top free agents during the 2023-24 offseason. Four players — pitchers Jordan Montgomery and Blake Snell, outfielder Cody Bellinger and third baseman Matt Chapman — remained unsigned heading into spring training. Each player ended up taking a contract with an opt-out after the first year, hoping to have better luck in free agency the following year.
In some cases, that strategy worked out. Chapman signed a six-year, $151 million extension to remain in San Francisco. Snell received a five-year, $182 million contract from the Dodgers. Bellinger and Montgomery did not fare as well, opting into their 2025 salary after disappointing seasons. Montgomery was vocal in his criticism of Boras, saying that his former agent “kind of butchered” his free agency.
Alonso and Bregman may not share the same fate as the infamous Boras Four. Bob Nightengale from USA Today opined that both situations should be resolved soon. However, that would be because Alonso and Bregman wanted to resolve their situation rather than any interested teams improving their offer.
Boras has had his successes this offseason. Outfielder Juan Soto signed a record-breaking 15-year contract worth $765 million with the Mets. Pitcher Corbin Burnes landed a six-year deal worth $210 million from the Diamondbacks. Boras is still getting those high-dollar deals done.
However, some of the super agent luster has disappeared. Teams are not falling for his “mystery team” and bidding against themselves any longer. Teams have changed how they operate in free agency, while Boras has been using the same tactics for decades. It is time for Boras to adapt before he loses that luster as a super agent and finds more of his clients twisting in the free-agent winds as spring training approaches.
