Jordan Montgomery blames Boras for Red Sox not signing him

Montgomery said he would have considered playing in Boston if the Red Sox made an offer this past winter.

The Red Sox were reportedly favorites to sign Jordan Montgomery this past offseason. AP Photo/Darryl Webb

This past winter was a long one for Jordan Montgomery. In an offseason filled with rumors linking him to the Red Sox, the left-handed starting pitcher ultimately agreed to terms with the Arizona Diamondbacks on March 26, two days before the start of MLB’s 2024 regular season.

Montgomery blamed his former agent, Scott Boras, on Friday for “butchering” the offseason and failing to get a deal done with Boston in a timely manner.

“I had a Zoom call with (the Red Sox), that’s really all I know. It went good,” Montgomery told the Boston Herald’s Mac Cerullo ahead of the Red Sox’ series against the Diamondbacks this weekend at Fenway Park. “I don’t know, obviously Boras kind of butchered it, so I’m just trying to move on from the offseason and try to forget it.”

Montgomery fired Boras on April 11 and hired agents from Wasserman to represent him.

Boston was reportedly the favorite to sign the 31-year-old on March 4, a few weeks before he landed with the Diamondbacks. The Red Sox and Montgomery were consistently linked throughout the offseason; the team was in dire need of starting pitching, and the hurler was exactly what Boston needed.

Despite one report claiming that Montgomery didn’t want to sign with the Red Sox following his deal with Arizona, he told Cerullo he would have been interested in playing in Boston.

“Obviously Boras kind of butchered it, so I’m just trying to move on from the offseason and try to forget it.”

Once a possible Red Sox target, Jordan Montgomery opened up about his disappointing free agency and his potential interest in Boston.https://t.co/7bhx64CPcM

— Mac Cerullo (@MacCerullo) August 23, 2024

“Yeah, for sure. Me and my wife loved it here. She was at Beth Israel for a year, love the area, love the fans,” Montgomery said. “It would have been awesome if it had worked out that way, but it didn’t.”

He also said that to his knowledge, the Red Sox never offered him a contract.

Entering last offseason, Montgomery was poised to break the bank as a free agent. He was coming off a 2023 season in which he won the World Series with the Texas Rangers. Montgomery posted a 2.90 ERA in five starts over 31 innings in the playoffs. He struck out 17 batters and allowed just five walks over those high-stakes appearances.

Montgomery signed a one-year, $25 million contract with the Diamondbacks, a deal that has to be far from what he expected after helping lead the Rangers to their first World Series title.

In turn, the starter has struggled with Arizona this season. Montgomery owns a 6.44 ERA and 1.67 WHIP in 19 starts over 95 innings. Hitters are batting .315 off of him, and he’s on pace to allow the most runs in his MLB career (he allowed 75 last year over 188 ⅔ innings, and has already given up 70 in 2024).

Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo announced on Friday that Montgomery will be pitching out of the bullpen moving forward amid the pitcher’s struggles.

Montgomery’s troubles on the mound this season, coupled with a contract surely far from what he wanted, has rightfully left him with a bad taste in his mouth for his ex-agent as he visits Fenway for the first time this season.