The Slow Offseason, the 2010 Free Agent Class, and Collusion

by jscape2000 on Nov 20, 2009 7:43 AM EST in New York Yankees Analysis

"We have evaluated, now we will organize," Cashman said. "Then we will meet with ownership."

Cash will go talk to Hank and Hal, get authorization for next season's budget, and then dive into the market.

Because the Yanks are moving so methodically, the mood around baseball seems to be that this will be a long free agent season. No one wants to be the team to set the market, and no free agent wants to sign until the Yankees have made their offer.

The consensus that next season holds the free agent gems, may deflate the market even more- if you know there's going to be a party on Saturday, you don't spend all you funds on Thursday night.

Then there is the talk of collusion. Ken Rosenthal reports on the escalating war of words between Scott Boras and MLB Chief of Labor Relations Rob Manfred. Boras thinks the game was worth $6.3 billion dollars, and that there are a dozen clubs with $200M revenues fielding teams for around $70-$90M (what they receive from revenue sharing and MLB's tv and licensing contracts). All of these numbers have allegedly attached to them because baseball doesn't disclose hard numbers, a point sure to come up in the next labor talks.

I've hated Scott Boras for years. His willingness to pick and choose facts to present each client as a baseball immortal, his eagerness to move successful players to dead-end franchises for an extra nickle, and his enthusiasm for non-traditional contract loopholes and incentives are all repugnant to me.

But if Scott Boras becomes one of the central figures in a movement to expose baseball's finances and move more of the revenue from the owners to the workers, he could have a Darth Vader moment.

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Why?

Why is Scott Boras the bad guy? If you had an opportunity to make more money at your job wouldn’t you? Why shouldn’t athletes try to make as much as they can and why shouldn’t their agents facilitate that? These owners are not paupers they are MULTI-BILLIONAIRES who cry poor while making money hand over fist. NO ONE CONTINUES TO OWN A BUSINESS THAT IS LOSING MONEY! So these claims that teams can’t afford to spend more money and fans blaming the players is just unfathomable to me.
In my field I try to work for the largest companies iI can so I can make the most money I can. Since when are the workers responsible for the owner of the companies inability to control themselves when it comes to spending money?
Sports is a business. If you could have an agent like Boras who was able to ensure that wherever you worked you made as much as possible would you villify him then?

by ae2cdk on Nov 20, 2009 8:59 AM EST reply actions

It just seems to me that Boras often offers advice that puts the dollar sign ahead of more intangible concerns like playoff chances.

Sure, I want to make the most money possible, and I’m not going to take a pay cut to stay someplace just for happiness, but there is a threshhold at which concerns like do I like who I work with and does it give me a chance to do what I want becomes more important than a 3% raise.

"Have faith in the Yankees, my son. Think of the great DiMaggio."

by jscape2000 on Nov 20, 2009 9:44 AM EST up reply actions

So, he does his job?

It’s not an agent’s job to make sure his client is happy and smiling, it’s his job to maximize his client’s value.

The reason sports agents exist is that most athletes are too dumb to do that themselves and would end up getting screwed by management. Boras is a complete asshole, but he’s also great at his job, which is why he has so many clients in the first place.

Now, if a player tells his agent that he wants to get maximum value from a list of teams he feels are competitive, the agent has to act on those interests as well. If the player just says, “go get me a free agent contract” how can you expect Boras to do anything but find the most money?

by New York Sports Jerk on Nov 20, 2009 10:03 AM EST up reply actions

Fair point. And at the end of the day it is the player’s signature on the contract.

"Have faith in the Yankees, my son. Think of the great DiMaggio."

by jscape2000 on Nov 20, 2009 12:31 PM EST up reply actions

So you make the final decision just like the athletes do so how is it Boras’s fault? And if the owners didn’t want to pay the money no one is putting a gun to their heads to sign guys to ridiculous contracts. The agent can ask for whatever he wants but if no one is willing to pay then the agents have to come down off of their offer. The Dodgers re-signed Manny when no one else was even offering him a contract yet somehow its the agents fault that Manny is getting the money he is getting . At what point do we as fans make the the owners take responsibility for being fiscally responsible and stop blaming the workers?

by ae2cdk on Nov 20, 2009 10:28 AM EST up reply actions

Hate Scott Boros? He does his job and he is a breath of fresh air. In my view and I could expand for pages, Marvin Miller and Boros helped to save baseball and in a big way helped create the economic giant that is modern baseball.

by Jtmc on Nov 20, 2009 10:35 AM EST reply actions

BTW

Great topic just for the many differing points of view on baseball,agents and money.

by ae2cdk on Nov 20, 2009 10:40 AM EST reply actions

Scott Boras

not only is doing his job, but the players he represents has to sign the contracts he procures, so it’s ultimately their decision whether to play for a specific team. However, one of his clients was willing to take a paycut to go to a team and the MLBPA wouldn’t let him (Arod would have gone to the Red Sox for less than the Yankees were offering, if I recall correctly).

There’s many forces at work here, not the least of which is the economy. However, I think if Boras and other agents can expose the true spending practices of MLB clubs, it may assuage the concept of parity in baseball. Just think, if we had solid proof of the Marlins revenue and how much they were actually spending on their team, it’s better for the fans and the players to know which teams really invest in themselves and which have owners that just pocket the money. Plus, if collusion is actually going on at some level, the government can step in because collusion is illegal and a factor of a monopoly that doesn’t encourage free enterprise.

I agree that baseball team ownership is a business and you can only get a better business and a better product by putting money into it. With a few exceptions, this has been true of all championship teams since divisional play began. If teams like the Marlins, Twins, Indians, Pirates, etc don’t want to reinvest in their teams, they will consistently present a lesser product than those that are willing to spend the money (reinvest it in their product).

Final thoughts:

Yes, the agents are a large reason that the salaries have grown to what they are now, but I think so are the MLBPA and the owners that are willing to spend
Transparency is good and collusion is bad

by phonty on Nov 20, 2009 12:36 PM EST reply actions

I don't mind Boras for the veteran players contracts

..its the rookie signings that I can;‘t stand. Yes, he’s doing his job. But the whole idea of the draft of the best players in the draft go to the worst teams.

Basketball really has the draft wages down pretty good.

"It ain't over till its over"---

by FreeBradshaw on Nov 20, 2009 12:50 PM EST reply actions