Scott Boras Calls MLB Free Agency Corrupt
Super agent Scott Boras believes MLB free agency is corrupt. The man who secured a $214 million contract for Price Fielder before the 2012 season claims contracts are not being rewarded based on player performance.
Scott Boras calling MLB free agency corrupt might come as a surprise to anyone who knows his name. Boras deals with baseball’s biggest clients. Along with Prince, Fielder has has negotiated lucrative contracts for Matt Holliday, Adrian Beltre, Manny Ramirez, and a slew of other recognizable names.
Baseball introduced a new compensation system for free agents this year. Teams were able to offer their players $13.3 million “qualifying offers.” A number of athletes rejected those offers, seeking long-term contracts on the free agent market. Then whatever team signed that player would owe their previous team a draft pick as compensation.
Scott Boras calls the new system corrupt. He believes contracts should be rewarded based on performance, not outside factors. He used Kyle Lohse’s three year, $33 million contract with the Milwaukee Brewers as an example. Lohse will earn roughly $11 million per season. He rejected his qualifying offer from the St. Louis Cardinals.
Boras says Lohse lost money in free agency because of his qualifying offer: “When you have a system that does not reward performance, you know we have something corrupt in the major league process. You cannot have that in the major league system, because it’s not rewarding performance.”
Scott Boras also compares Adam LaRoche’s $12 million per year contract to Shane Victorino’s $13 million per year contract. LaRoche was given a qualifying offer and Victorino was not. Last season LaRoche had 33 home runs and 100 RBI’s. Victorino only had 11 home runs and 55 RBI’s.
If Boras had his way, Adam LaRoche would be making significantly more money than Shane Victorino based on performance. Boras wants the draft pick compensation that goes along with a qualifying offer eliminated from baseball.
Do you agree with Scott Boras the MLB free agency has become corrupt?
