Scott Boras may seem insane for turning this down, and maybe he is, but he ends up being right more often than not.
The New York Yankees offered free agent outfielder Shin-Soo Choo a seven-year deal worth $140 million after they had already signed Jacoby Ellsbury, reports Jeff Passan of Yahoo! Sports.
Scott Boras, who represents Choo, reportedly turned down the deal, saying that his client was seeking "Ellsbury money", i.e. closer to $153 million. The Yankees refused to budge from where they were at and instead signed Carlos Beltran to a $45 million deal, meaning New York is likely no longer an option for Choo. Similarly, the Rangers have reportedly moved on from Choo and are now focusing their efforts on signing Japanese ace Masahiro Tanaka if he is posted.
Of course, the Yankees and Rangers are not the only teams to have been in on Choo up to this point. Several teams are rumored to have some deal on the table, including the Houston Astros, who said at the beginning of the offseason that they would raise team payroll. Despite these offers all being on the table, Boras clearly has not seen one that he has been fond of yet.
Choo came into the offseason hoping to sign a similar deal to the seven year, $126 million contract Jayson Werth signed with the Nationals a few years ago. With the way the market has played out, however, it's clear that Boras believes he can get Choo a much sweeter deal.
Choo, 31, is the top player left in free agency at this point. He is coming off arguably the best year of his career as he hit .285/.423/.462 with 21 home runs and 20 stolen bases with the Reds. The Korean star always hovers around 20 homers and steals with outstanding on-base skills and solid defense. Though he played center field in Cincinnati, he profiles best in right field.
Boras will get Choo paid at some point. It may be tough to find someone willing to go beyond the Yankees' previous offer, however.
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