LAS VEGAS — Michael Conforto did not play one inning in 2022 after he had a down season in 2021. In April, he had surgery to repair his right shoulder after he had left-shoulder surgery earlier in his career. He is part of a well-stocked position in free agency — the left-handed corner outfielder.
Yet when it comes to advocacy for his clients, there is no one who makes a case publicly quite like Conforto’s agent, Scott Boras. And this is what he said about Conforto:
“It is Christmas for the Comforts. The interest is so broad.”
You didn’t expect subtlety from Boras, did you? Especially at that time on the baseball calendar in which you either have a free-agent jewel such as Aaron Judge or Trea Turner and you just wait for the phone calls to flood in. Or you have the kind of client who needs anything from sprucing up to full-on resuscitation in the marketplace.
There are four free agents with New York ties who not long ago probably thought free agency this offseason would be something entirely different — notably more appealing — than the current reality: Conforto, Aroldis Chapman, Joey Gallo and Gary Sanchez. Now, all will need hard selling — Chapman perhaps just to get a job, much less a good contract for 2023 or beyond.
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So, what does it look like now?
Conforto and Gallo: Both are represented by Boras and are part of that lefty-swinging corner outfield market that also includes Andrew Benintendi (whom the Yankees want to re-sign), Michael Brantley, Kole Calhoun, Corey Dickerson, Ben Gamel, Tyler Naquin, Joc Pederson, David Peralta and switch-hitters Robbie Grossman and Jurickson Profar, plus trade candidates such as Cubs switch-hitter Ian Happ, Orioles switch-hitter Anthony Santander and the Twins’ Max Kepler. In addition, Japanese star Masataka Yoshida (another Boras client) may be posted by the Japanese Series champion Orix Buffaloes.
Could the Mets reunite with Conforto if Brandon Nimmo, another Boras client, leaves?
Conforto rejected the Mets’ $18.4 million qualifying offer last offseason and did not sign before the lockout. Boras revealed in January that Conforto had suffered a torn labrum while doing baseball training. He denied the persistent rumors that Conforto either injured or re-injured his shoulder while diving off a boat.
During the 2022 season, Boras said that his client was capable of hitting from June onward, but was not capable of playing the field, and that there was a good chance he would sign after the All-Star break or the final month just to hit . Conforto never did. Boras said his client had opportunities to do so, but decided to train to be a whole player for next year. The Astros, independently, have said they would have signed Conforto prior to Sept. 1 to make him postseason eligible as long as he had shown his bat was back.
Now, Boras said Conforto is likely to sign a deal akin to the one other client, Carlos Rodon, signed last offseason — a two-year deal with an opt-out after one season. If, as Rodon did in 2022, Conforto excels in 2023, he could opt out into the market next offseason. If not, he would have the protection of a second year. Boras said club officials at the General Managers Meetings have been persistently inquiring on the outfielder. Boras said Conforto has full extension back in his swing during workouts near his Arizona home and that he is throwing up to 120 feet.
As for Gallo, Boras downplayed his poor performance since he was traded away from the Rangers in July 2021. Boras noted that, despite a few miserable months in 2021 with the Yankees, Gallo still hit 38 homers and won a Gold Glove. Clearly, Gallo never adjusted to New York. Boras dismissed Gallo’s similar production after he was acquired by the Dodgers at the 2022 trade deadline, attributing it to not playing full-time, adding, “He’s going to be playing full-time wherever he [signs].”
Gallo will turn 29 in two weeks, and Boras also said the elimination of full shifts should help a player who hit just .160 for the Yankees and Dodgers this past season. Does Texas want him back?
Chapman and Sanchez: Let’s put these two together, because the Yankees once envisioned them as a battery that would close out championships. Edwin Diaz just agreed with the Mets on a five-year, $102 million pact that eclipsed the five years at $86 million Chapman received from the Yankees after the 2016 season for the largest contract ever awarded to a reliever.
Barry Praver of Magnus, Chapman’s agency, did not want to speak publicly about his free agency. Clearly, there is work to be done. Chapman has lost velocity, control and confidence in his fastball — and with it, he has lost a late-inning role. He infuriated the Yankees late last season by having to be put on the injured list when the area around a new tattoo became infected and more so when he said he would not rejoin the team for the playoffs without assurance that he would make the postseason roster.
Still, while a 97.7 mph average on his fastball was Chapman’s career low, there are not many lefties who can offer that. Could another team or teams be intrigued enough to provide a low base of $1 million or $2 million with a chance to make more if he relieves regularly? Or is Chapman too toxic now?
Francis Marquez of the MAS+ Agency did not reply to a text. But their client, Sanchez, after production from 2015-17 that indicated he would be an above-average hitter with power, has, for five years now, been a low-average, high-strikeout performer with diminishing returns on his power. Defensive metrics, especially framing, have always liked Sanchez’s catching skills more than eyeball scouting has — although those with the Yankees never questioned Sanchez’s sincerity about wanting to improve defensively.
Sanchez will turn 30 next month. Is there a team that sees him as a catcher/DH mix with the potential to reclaim offensive upside?
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