Jordan Montgomery Fires Scott Boras After A Disastrous Offseason
After an offseason that ended with him signing a one-year deal with the Diamondbacks, left-hander Jordan Montgomery has fired Scott Boras according to ESPN's Kiley McDaniel. Montgomery will now be represented by Joel Wolfe and Nick Chanock of Wasserman.
Montgomery was one of four free agents represented by Boras, dubbed the "Boras Four", who waited until late March to sign a short term deal with a chance to re-enter the free agent market next winter. Boras primarily blamed owners for why his clients ended up settling for much less than their initial ask. Matt Chapman and Blake Snell signed short-term deals with the Giants and J.D. Martinez signed a one-year deal with the Mets.
Add to that group Cody Bellinger, who signed a three year deal February 27th with opt outs for 2025 and 2026, and it can only be characterized as a massive failure of an off season for the Boras Agency
Montgomery was coming off career-highs in starts and innings, and pitched well in the postseason, setting himself up for a fairly strong market. MLB Trade Rumors projected the left-hander to land a six-year, $150 million contract while the median crowd source projection on FanGraphs was five years, $105 million. Earlier in the offseason, it was reported Montgomery was seeking as much as a seven-year deal. Ultimately he signed a one-year deal with the D-backs plus a vesting option for 2025 that triggers after 10 starts, but he could opt out of that and re-enter the free agent market at 32. Given the recent news, it wouldn't be a surprise if that happens.
The D-backs are targeting April 19th as the likely first start for the left-hander. He threw 60 pitches in a four-inning start with Reno on Sunday and is scheduled to ramp up from there on Saturday before joining the big league club. Arizona is banking on the left-hander adding length and stability to a rotation that currently features three pitchers that are 26 or younger. Assuming Montgomery stays healthy the rest of the way, he's on track to make around 28 starts in 2024 with the D-backs.