When Scott Boras' phone rings, agent quips: 'Just another owner begging to meet with Skubal'

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Scott Boras was 15 minutes into his annual pun-filled news conference at the general managers meetings when a cellphone rang in his pocket.

“Just another owner begging to meet with Skubal,” baseball's most visible agent quipped Wednesday.

Boras represents about two dozen free agents in what Major League Baseball hopes is the last offseason without a salary cap. Tarik Skubal, a Boras client, could set a contract record for a pitcher.

Teams are negotiating to reach deals before an expected lockout starts Dec. 2.

“There’s a clear intent on a group of players,” said Boras, whose free agent clients include Randy Arozarena, Nick Martinez and Max Scherzer. “They’re pursuing it aggressively.”

MLB's five-year labor contract expires Dec. 1 at 12:59 p.m. EST and management is expected to immediately start the sport's 10th work stoppage since 1972.

On the day before the lockout began in 2021, there were 27 announced contracts that totaled more than $1.4 billion — include deals for Boras clients Corey Seager and Marcus Semien that accounted for $500 million.

Boras maintained veteran players are willing to sit out in order to fight off a cap, which owners have proposed for the first time since a 7 1/2-month strike in 1994 and '95 .

“They are the ones that are the most aware,” he said. “They are recipients of what others did for them and they are in great places in their lives and they’re more than willing to share, contribute, aid and frankly stabilize the approach that the veterans took for them to apply to the young players of today.”

He called management's proposal to increase the major league minimum salary to $900,000 a carrot.

“They’re so repetitious. They are anticipated,” he said. “Those are very de minimis advances, knowing the ask of what they want to take away.”

He used the term “Reven-occhio” — wordplay on the children's story character Pinocchio, whose nose grows when he lies — to say MLB's claims economic change is needed are belied by private equity's investment in teams. He claimed a salary cap was “something that is going to create a true talent tyranny” and increase club equity value at a far higher rate than player salaries.

“The Broncos sell for $4.5 billion five years ago and the Seahawks sell for $9.6 billion,” Boras said, citing approximate amount of those deals. “Over 100% increase in franchise value. What’s the cap structure do for the players? And the reality of it is they’re sitting there going with this modest increase of half that, 50%.”

“The asset class of our game is documented throughout by genius owners, genius owners having the freedom, the ability under this system, to come in and advance their thoughts, to bring in the wherewithal for them to grow a franchise to its optimum,” he said.

Among his groaners:

— “It's very clear that there is a dominant and strong Sku-Bull market.”

— “Teams are not devoid of pursuing their championship fortunes and they understand there’s only one Tarik card.”

— “Teams have filled their tanks and they’re all clearly ready for the Skubal dive.”

See AP’s full MLB coverage here