Why Jordan Montgomery's deal is a win for the D-Backs & a loss for Scott Boras | Baseball Bar-B-Cast
Yahoo Sports senior MLB analysts Jordan Shusterman and Jake Mintz break down the key takeaways of Jordan Montgomery’s 1-year, $25 million contract with the Arizona Diamondbacks. Hear the full conversation on the “Baseball Bar-B-Cast” podcast - and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you listen.
Video Transcript
JAKE MINTZ: Jordan Montgomery, postseason hero, winning the World Series with the Texas Rangers, hitting free agency at a very convenient time for him. Felt like one hell of a walk year, but up until yesterday, he continued to be unemployed, and in come some income, the Arizona Diamondbacks, essentially, a deal for two years, $45 million, Jordan Montgomery in the desert.
JORDAN SHUSTERMAN: The first take for everyone is, oh, well, how come all these other teams that need pitching more didn't beat that? It's not always that simple. I know we want to make it that simple. But to me, this is about Jordan Montgomery saying, um, hello, I would like to be on a team. Clearly, he had no interest in taking this into the season.
And the Arizona Diamondbacks, who have already lost their closer, Paul Sewald, to the IL, and the other lefty they gave a bunch of money, Eduardo Rodriguez, to an injury as well, and them saying, no, no, no, we're not gonna let that be like, ah, OK, screw it, we'll just, you know, roll Tommy Henry out there and hope for the best. They're like, no, no, no, like, we just won the National League, and we are taking this season very seriously, and if no one else wants to jump in to make this happen, we will happily give Jordan Montgomery, you know, $25 million a season.
JAKE MINTZ: And we've reached a point now where this feels like more about Scott Boras biffing the offseason than the transaction itself, because all of his clients just undershot what we thought they'd get, and there's no two ways around it. There's no way these folks are happy, or are happy with how this played out, and Montgomery-- You know what, it smells like Montgomery was like, you get me the best deal before opening day. Like, was like, I'm signing before opening day. I would imagine that's how this played out.
JORDAN SHUSTERMAN: Yeah, that's absolutely what it looks like. But, yeah, I mean, basically every single one of his top clients besides Jung Hoo Lee, who, of course, did extremely well, although, ultimately, you know, if you just factor that into the total amount of money given by the Giants to Scott Boras clients, it kind of evens out to still end up being less than you probably expected, when you consider what Chapman and Snell got.
But, yeah, I mean, again, I mean, I'm glad he has a team. It is a good fit, and credit to the Snakes. And I think the hype after the postseason for Montgomery was a little bit out of control, and I never thought he was gonna get seven, $200 million, or whatever Boris was floating at the beginning of the winter. However, his durability and the fact that he has legitimately improved over the last few seasons, $25 million is ridiculous. I mean, for a guy who's been this durable to not be able to get a long-term deal like this is just shocking, and really disappointing for him, but I'm glad he has a team, and hopefully he'll be pitching soon.
