Email a copy of 'Interpreting Scott Boras' Comments On Prince Fielder' to a friend
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By Ben Nicholson-Smith | at
Email a copy of 'Interpreting Scott Boras' Comments On Prince Fielder' to a friend
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WonderboyRooney10
It is just stunning how this man compares Fielder (who is a very good player dont get me wrong) with some of the all time greats with a straight face. Jimmie Foxx? Fine, I can live with that. But putting Fielder and Lou Gehrig in the same sentence is outrageous.
Bob George
Jimmie Foxx was also an amazing player, but not as well known by today’s fans as any Yankee player. Go look up Foxx’s stats, they are mind boggling. So are one of his teammates, Al Simmons. Foxx and Simmons were two of the greatest hitters who ever lived.
Foxx had 3 seasons of 163 or more RBI, and retired with a .609 slg percentage. Foxx played through age 37, with many seasons declining from his peak years. Fielder’s career slg is .540. Putting Fielder and Jimmie Foxx in the same sentence is outrageous, at least at this point of Fielder’s career.
Simmons had 100 rbi just in home games two different seasons, the only player in history to do that. He hit .381 or better 4 times.
Baseball is full of fascinating players. Just reading up on some of the greats that came before my time is enough to fall in love with the game all over again.
WonderboyRooney10
Oh no I totally agree Jimmie Foxx was amazing. But Gehrig is immortal. Everyone knows him. Some casual baseball fans might not even know who Jimmie Foxx is. Statistically its not even a comparison between Fielder and Foxx
BlueSkyLA
And that leaves out Ty Cobb, who only managed to bat .366 over the course of his career — which lasted until he was 41, a total of 24 years! Cobb didn’t hit a lot of home runs (a dead-ball period player) but that shouldn’t disqualify him from being called the greatest hitter in the history of the game.
WonderboyRooney10
Ted Williams gets my vote. Of course there is no one right answer. Although I wonder how people like Babe Ruth would be today in the modern game. Would he still be a god or more of like Carlos Pena
BlueSkyLA
Right, you can’t control all of the variables, so it’s an endless debate. The parks were different, the grass was different, the ball was different — even the distance between the mound and home plate was different. Relief pitching was hardly used. Mostly to the advantage of hitters. Cobb impresses me because of his durability and consistency. He was also a demon on the base paths.
WonderboyRooney10
Ted Williams gets my vote. Of course there is no one right answer. Although I wonder how people like Babe Ruth would be today in the modern game. Would he still be a god or more of like Carlos Pena
FS54 2
If I am not mistaken, Cobb was considered a better hitter than Ruth by many of their contemporaries. Cobb may not have been a power hitter (actually there are couple of statistical papers that argue he was a power hitter), but he was more complete hitter and player than Ruth. Ruth dominated slugging like no one else, but Cobb dominated hitting like no one else before.
BlueSkyLA
… or after.
cedarandstone
Simmons was a Milwaukee native and is buried here. Not that it matters, but a slight connection nonetheless.
gradylittle
For GM’s, Boras must be THAT guy that no one wants to speak to or deal with.
aricollins
The fact that primes (especially for big men) don’t extend into their mid-30s is indeed a blow to the idea that signing him to an 8-year contract means he’ll still be in his prime for the whole deal.
But it does highlight the fact that you so rarely get a star player for the actual prime years, which are 26-29. Pretty unique opportunity with Fielder, so that he’s worth giving a 6- to 8-year contract to. You know you’ll be overpaying for his decline phase, but you’ll be underpaying for his prime years, years you never get out of a star player unless you develop them.
Nate Petrashek
I love listening to Boras talk. His statements so often just reek of hyperbole and desperation. And in light of the Lozano allegations, I think I should change my career track. It certainly doesn’t look like a bad time for someone who’d play it straight with players and GMs to enter the fray.
KyleB
If you play it staright with players and GMs you’ll never be an agent at all.
Nate Petrashek
Why not? An agent’s duty to his client is to act in the client’s best interests. You can still work hard for your client and get him a good deal without all the head games. Its just a different approach, and one I think GMs and some players would find refreshing.
And if indeed the players would rather have the hookers, they’d certainly be free to look up Lozano.
Nate Petrashek
Why not? An agent’s duty to his client is to act in the client’s best interests. You can still work hard for your client and get him a good deal without all the head games. Its just a different approach, and one I think GMs and some players would find refreshing.
And if indeed the players would rather have the hookers, they’d certainly be free to look up Lozano.
Cavman_Boland
Really? I think the guy is an absolute beauty. He knows how to make his case and make a convincing argument a lot like a politician. The contracts he’s gotten for clients speaks for themselves. Man I wish I was an agent.
Okteds
Except it’s not a convincing argument. This whole thread, article and comments included, have highlighted how ridiculous and off-base his arguments are. Not one person here takes him with any seriousness….hmmm, maybe you’re right, he is a lot like a politician. But please let’s not feed into this idiocy by call his arguments “convincing”.
Nate Petrashek
The part that shocks me is that he still gets clubs to bite on his public displays of ignorance; all you need is one dumb GM to make Boras look like a genius. I wish we’d stop confusing the idiocy of one for the competence of another.
Liam_Ho
Because Boras is the last shop open during offseason, when teams get desperate they’ll pay close enough to what he wants.
BlueSkyLA
I wish I could be as desperate as Scott Boras.
Okteds
or as shameless…
BlueSkyLA
Boras is a salesman, first and foremost. Shame and salesmanship are like oil and water.
BlueSkyLA
I wish I could be as desperate as Scott Boras.
notsureifsrs
i only read ben’s parts. strict ignore-boras policy. i recommend it to all GMs
Patrick OKennedy
Nice breakdown, Ben. I’m just waiting for Mr. Boras to tell us that there are 35 clubs with offers on the table for his client.
0bsessions
NFL counts.
Bob George
Prime years are generally 27-32, not through age 36. It can vary wildly, especially for superstars, who can decline and still put up good numbers, but 27-32 is the general consensus for prime age performance.
Encarnacion's Parrot
Congrats Boras on completely ignoring the topic of Fielders body. No one is concerned with his height.
Quacktastic_Duck
Haha, I thought about that as well when reading this. I’m sure that his height is the first thing that comes to mind when you see him. ::rolls eyes::
cedarandstone
Sure he’s fat, but he’s also short. Lol.
Dick Armada
Boras gonna talk some team into 10/300 and it ain’t gonna be my Angels
KyleB
Of course it’s not………..
Bini
The “post steriod era” sample size is so small, it’s hardly worth mentioning.
jasonk
I can see Fielder getting a Howard-type contract (5-125 extension) from an NL team. Maybe 6-155? Only an AL team would go 7-9 years.
Rcsully
I will shorten this article …. Scott was saying … Don’t try to get Fielder for a bargain I won’t have any of that.
Rcsully
I will shorten this article …. Scott was saying … Don’t try to get Fielder for a bargain I won’t have any of that.
jeff
Boras knows how to candy-coat words, thats his job, but he didn’t get too carried away on Fielder… if you think comparing Fielder to Foxx or Gehrig is a reach, its because he hasn’t finished his career yet. Unlike Ryan Howard, he REALLY knows how to hit, not just for power, but with a patient eye. the only knock on Prince is his weight, and if he keeps it down he’s gonna finish in the top 5 all-time for home runs easily, with a slew of other good numbers along with it, including a good batting avg. He’s on pace to be a first-ballot HOF
ctownboy
One of the things I HATE about Boras is every year there seems to be a “mystery team” in on one of his players. Said “mystery team” seems to show up right about the time most other teams have reached the top of what they are willing to pay a player.
To stop this from happening (and causing teams to bid against themselves which then causes them to have less money to pay for other players they might want to go after while also driving up the cost of similiar players for ALL teams) I suggest that MLB adopt a policy where ALL offers for Free Agents are submitted to the Commish’s Office. These offers could then only be seen by a few people in the Commish’s Office and the GM’s and owners of teams. This way, no fake “mystery team” comes into play and teams don’t have to bid against themselves for players.
To stop a team from bidding up a player they are not interested in, just to increase the cost for another team, a fine of 50% of the total bid could be imposed on a team found to be doing this.
In short, Free Agency is nothing but an auction and my plan would help to stop the shill bidding which goes on (shill bidding is illegal in most states and I don’t see why it is allowed with MLB).
NomarGarciaparra
uhhhh that sounds really stupid to me. I don’t think free agency should be an auction…this is business and the way it is conducted now is how business deals are typically conducted. Everyone hates Boras, but he is at the top of his business. He has the ability to manipulate teams, stretch comparisons, and most importantly, persuade owners to shell out more money than his clients are worth. That’s what agents are for…what’s the point of agents if it’s just going to be an auction?
MannyBeingMVP
Fielder’s downside is Ryan Howard. Fielder might share Howard’s risk of injury. As a MLB owner, I would offer Fielder six years at $150 million and I would be willing to let some outbid me if that is not enough.
cedarandstone
Fielder hits 40 points higher and has better defense.
ritz
Boras is the same guy that compiled what was essentially a book trying to show the similarities between Oliver Perez and Sandy Koufax. This is nothing new.
PaganIdolCow
As a human being, Scott Boras is of questionable value (as are we all). However, if I were a baseball player, I’d love to have Boras as my agent. You know, as long as he avoids World Series one-upmanship.
chee1rs
snake oil salesman
Awesome
Feilder is fat but powerful