March 9 comes every year, but this time it’s a little different. Mostly until this time, the teams focus on creating a balance in their squad and finalizing who will play where. The free agent market goes quiet and things start taking their final shape. However, not this year. This time there are two Scott Boras clients still waiting to strike a deal. But with only less than three weeks to go till the Opening Day, just how much more can Blake Snell and Jordan Montgomery wait?
If something similar happened with players who’ve had a bad walk year – it would’ve been slightly understandable. However, Snell won his second Cy Young and Montgomery won his first World Series title in 2023. But the failure of Boras to get a deal for them is astounding. Things have been delayed to such an extent that a top insider is “alarmed” by the situation.
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Pitchers usually require more time than other players to gel with the team. Good form creeps in a little slowly for them. As a result, it becomes imperative to give the pitchers proper time with the catchers. Snell and Monty have completely missed that experience this year. That has become a reason why The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal looked a little worried during his appearance in the Foul Territory Show.
“It’s alarming that they’re not signed at this point. It’s March 8. And I know Scott Boras will tell you, “Well, these guys are training at my training institute, they’re fine. They’re doing everything normal pitchers in Spring Training would do. “No they’re not performing in game-like situations…” Rosenthal said.
Rosenthal then expressed that Snell and Monty might be in a situation where they may not be ready to perform by the Opening Day. For players looking at a big payday, that isn’t an ideal situation to be in. But as it stands, Boras may have no option – the market is too thin for either of them.
Read more: What Is Blake Snell’s Net Worth?
Blake Snell and Jordan Montgomery – suffering from success
The successful 2023 may have heightened the expectations of Boras, Monty, and Snell. Could that have led to those extremely high asking prices? It’s clear, those demands have scared quite a few executives. The Yankees are the prime example – they offered a big deal but lost their interest after Snell’s $200 million+ demands.
On the other hand, the Texas Rangers’ financial issues have eliminated them from the Montgomery sweepstakes. Luckily for Monty, the Boston Red Sox have just had a major injury scare for Lucas Giolito – which may have opened the doors for Montgomery. Still, with only 19 days to go, one wonders just how high their deal can go.
Is a short-term deal more likely? That’s a tricky question as any team would lose one draft pick by signing Snell. So that makes things even tougher for the Cy Young winner. Here we are. It’s March 9 and there’s still no clarity on this situation.
Written by
Edited by
Deepanshi Bajaj