Kumar Rocker will be Just Fine, Scott Boras Never Loses
MLB’s deadline for signing draft picks ended this past Sunday. Just like that, a number of prospects are headed to different farms, but more than a few players who were drafted will still spend the next couple of years among the amateur ranks proving themselves a little more. In the middle of those groups is Kumar Rocker, who was drafted as the overall number ten pick by the New York Mets, but they didn’t get a deal done. For sports bettors looking for MLB player prop bets, the rapid change didn’t sit well, either.
Uncertain Future for Kumar Rocker
The right-handed Rocker was happy when he was selected during the MLB Draft and an agreement worth $6 million in the form of a signing bonus had him seeing green. However, it disappeared as quickly as it came when a post-draft medical exam showed damage (maybe) to his throwing arm that scared away the Mets. As a consolation, the Mets will get the overall 11 pick in next year’s draft, but have lost their shot at Rocker.
More important than the loss the Mets will suffer, Rocker now faces an uncertain future. Because of language in the league’s collective bargaining agreement, he is no longer eligible to join any MLB team until next year’s draft at the earliest. That means Rocker only has a few options on what he can do to stay in form for another shot next year. He has already said that he won’t go back to Vanderbilt, which would have at least given him access to the new Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) rules being implemented. Rocker was close to scoring a massive payday, only to have it ripped away at the last second by what some believe is a phantom injury.
Rocker Could Go Independent
One option Rocker has at his disposal is to sign with an independent league team, similar to what Luke Hochevar did when he was denied a shot at MLB ball years ago. Hochevar was advised by Scott Boras, just like Rocker was, when the LA Dodgers moved to pick him as the 20th selection in the 2005 draft. Hochevar ended up with the Fort Worth Cats of the American Association, on advice from Boras, before being picked up by the Kansas City Royals the following year. The delay proved financially advantageous for the righty, as well, as his signing bonus was half-a-million more than what the Dodgers were going to offer him. Hochevar only had to make four starts with the Cats to prove himself and went on to become a World Series champion with the Royals in 2015.
Boras is experienced at throwing this curveball, doing the same move again years later when he was advising James Paxton. Paxton was picked 37th in the 2009 draft by the Toronto Blue Jays, who offered him a little less than $900,000 to sign, but that wasn’t enough. Unable to return to Kentucky, thanks to some controversy between the Blue Jays and the school, Boras guided Paxton to the Grand Prairie AirHogs. Like Hochevar, he had four starts before proving himself and was picked up in the 2010 draft. The Seattle Mariners scooped him up, giving him $942,500 to sign.
While Rocker’s situation isn’t exactly the same because of the supposed medical aspect, he could still make appearances with a team like the Kansas City Monarchs or the Milwaukee Milkmen before making another run at the draft.
Overseas Leagues an Option
Perhaps maybe not as ideal, Rocker could also look overseas. He could go to Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) league, which has been a Boras landing spot before. Carter Stewart was the eighth pick in the 2018 draft, when the Atlanta Braves looked to sign him with a $2-million bonus. However, like Rocker, a post-draft medical exam uncovered a possible wrist condition. As a result, the Braves shied away and Stewart accepted a $7-million contract with the Softbank Hawks.
It took a little longer for Stewart to get going in the NPB. He accepted the Hawks’ offer in 2019 and spent time in the league’s minors before making his debut in the majors earlier this year. However, it still paid off, as his 2019 signing was said to be worth a guaranteed minimum of $7 million.
The result here is that Boras’ clients always seem to come out on top. The Mets would have been wise to consider that.
