Veteran agent Jeff Borris, formerly of the Beverly Hills Sports Council, is now an agent with the Ballengee Group, according to a press release from the agency. That transition has a direct impact on this year’s class of free agents, as Borris is the representative for right-hander Darren O’Day as well as first baseman Mark Reynolds.
The Ballengee Group is still a relatively new agency but has several notable big league (or recent big league) clients within its ranks, including Heath Bell, Jordan Lyles and Brett Oberholtzer, among others. Adding a free agent of O’Day’s stature to its ranks will be a boon, as it would for any agency. And Borris himself brings a wealth of experience, given his lengthy career as a high-profile agent, with Barry Bonds serving as his most notable client.
Unlike other agency switches, the shift doesn’t figure to slow down O’Day’s timeline to sign by all that much, as his primary agent will be changing agencies with him. In some instances, changing agents can either raise or lower contractual expectations, but that doesn’t figure to be an issue here, and Borris of course has been involved in all prior negotiations with interested teams, so the same groundwork for a contract has still been laid.
O’Day is said to be seeking a four-year contract in the $28-36MM range, and many believe it’s possible for him to achieve that goal due to the demand for his services. O’Day is the top relief name on this year’s market, so despite his slightly advanced age (33), a lengthy list of teams has lined up to try to acquire the former Orioles setup ace, who sports a sub-2.00 ERA over his past four seasons.
The Orioles themselves are said to have recently made a competitive offer for O’Day, making them a serious player for his services along with the Nationals, Dodgers and Braves. Other clubs such as the Giants, Mets and Tigers have been tied to O’Day throughout the offseason.
As is the case with all changes of this nature, the switch has been reflected in MLBTR’s Agency Database. If you see an errors or omissions within the database, please let us know via email: mlbtrdatabase@gmail.com.
