Son of former standout player for the Green Bay Packers logs onto transfer portal
Monday morning’s transfer portal launched with a bang, and Penn State had two early entries. Punter Alex Bacchetta has joined the portal, as has wide receiver Christian Driver. Driver, a four-star safety who arrived at Penn State in the Class of 2022, is the son of former Packer legend Donald Driver.
Driver, a redshirt freshman, moved from cornerback to running back last winter and made four appearances for the Nittany Lions this season. In his four games this season, Driver has caught one pass for eight yards and has made a few special teams tackles. Driver was the No. 31 safety in his class when he committed to Penn State over Wisconsin, per 247Sports.
There is still a great need for an update in the receiver group. One of the first steps in that process was hiring a new offensive coordinator. The Nittany Lions have also made a strong move at the position by giving North Texas native Ja’Mori Maclin an offer. As more players join the portal this month, this position group will be one to keep an eye on.
Since 1980, Scott Boras has been the baseball players’ agent. He has gotten his clients billions through negotiations. He has really closed deals for over $1 billion in a single month. For him, the phrase “super agent” was created.
It is therefore dangerous to question the appropriateness of his five well-known free-agent clients continuing to pursue contracts after their peers reported for spring training. Teams will give up to Boras’ demands eventually, right? It always ends with general managers blinking before Boras. Isn’t that right?
I guess we should change “always” to “usually.” Sometimes, even after the regular season has started, Boras clients have been compelled to accept mediocre agreements due to misreading the market or just plain stubbornness.
The unemployed are J.D. Martinez, Cody Bellinger, Matt Chapman, Jordan Montgomery, and Blake Snell. They are all multimillionaires already, and their baseball skills guarantee that many more millions are to come. However, how many teams have the financial resources and roster flexibility to make costly signings so close to opening day?
Recent rumblings in front offices raised questions. However, nothing that is stated at this stage can be divorced from the blustering, negotiating, and scheming that are inherent in such high-stakes talks.
The San Diego Padres actually require a designated hitter and an outfielder.Mike Trout stated that he has been putting pressure on Angels owner Arte Moreno to add one or two free agents to the team’s roster.Rafael Devers of the Boston Red Sox expressed dissatisfaction on Tuesday, saying that his team hasn’t made enough upgrades.
Continue reading: Analysis: Free-agent purgatory traps angels. Why don’t they have any elite players signed?
Pablo Sandoval, 37, and slugger Jorge Soler were just added to the San Francisco Giants, but they still need a starting pitcher. The Chicago Cubs and Boras are having the most intense staredown as they try to lower their asking price for Chapman or Bellinger.
“These are really good players that make a difference in winning results,” Boras texted The Times. “If owners value winning as their primary goal for their cities and fans, they’ll continue to make every effort to acquire elite talents.”
He needs five separate suitors because it’s improbable that any team would pay for more than one of the Boras quintet. Let’s look at the past performance of Boras’s clients who signed after spring training, or after the regular season started.
In the spring of 2018, the word “collusion” was all the rage since it seemed like teams had an implicit agreement not to overpay for free agents. However, it was not a replay of the 1980s, when conspiracy was proven and ostensibly eliminated.
Midway through February of 2018, Martinez—who is still unsigned—signed a five-year, $110 million contract with the Red Sox. Another Boras client, starter Jake Arrieta, agreed to a three-year, $75 million contract in mid-March with the Philadelphia Phillies. For Boras’s client Eric Hosmer, the Padres overpaid by eight years and $144 million.
See also: Cody Bellinger and a few other starting pitchers still available in the MLB free agent market
Mike Moustakas was left behind, and on March 9, 2018, he reluctantly agreed to a one-year, $6.5 million contract with the Kansas City Royals despite hitting 38 home runs the previous season.
However, Moustakas signed the biggest contract in the Cincinnati Reds’ history, a four-year, $64 million contract, less than two years later. Apparently, Boras always ends up with the bread.
More evidence is needed. Top drawer Boras client Bryce Harper did not have a job till the end of February 2019. Not to worry. Harper and the Phillies agreed to a historic $330 million, 13-year contract.
However, the Boras ledger has more cautionary tales like to those of Moustakas. The best part of 2019 for Cy Young Award winner Dallas Keuchel was his experience as a starter. Following five successful seasons with the Houston Astros, the left-hander pursued a nine-figure contract as a free agency.After waiting until June to sign, Keuchel pitched for the Atlanta Braves for the remainder of the season for $13 million. A year later, he accepted a three-year, $55.5 million contract with the Chicago White Sox.
See also: The Dodgers were unable to turn Cody Bellinger back into a star. “There are moments when there are simply no answers.”
Jeff Weaver, a starter, settled for one-year contracts after waiting for a long-term arrangement that never came together. Rather than becoming a free agent at the end of the season, his brother Jered Weaver is well-known for rejecting Boras’ advise and agreeing to a lowball five-year, $85-million contract extension with the Angels in August 2011.
However, with Boras serving as their agent, the Weaver brothers had made a total of $140 million when they hung up their cleats for good. For a few Simi Valley guys, it’s not a bad haul.
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