Scott Boras says the quiet part out loud about Orioles signing Pete Alonso

When the Baltimore Orioles signed Pete Alonso, it came as a bit of a surprise, but it was also a watershed moment. Mike Elias finally signed a big-time free agent (although still no huge pitching signings), and the Orioles as a franchise finally made the leap forward towards being real players in free agency again. It was a long time coming, but Alonso's agent, Scott Boras, may have just provided even more context as to why Baltimore pulled the trigger.

During a recent appearance on New York Post Sports' The Show, Boras discussed Alonso's free agency and value as a player. During the course of the discussion, it became very clear that Baltimore had a much more bullish outlook on Alonso than some of his other suitors this past offseason.

Pete Alonso's aptitude with runners on base was very attractive to the Orioles during their offseason pursuit of offensive help

It would be easy to say that "the Orioles wanted home runs and Alonso hits them" as the explanation for Baltimore's pursuit. However, Boras noted that there were a few teams, including the Orioles, that had noticed Alonso's propensity to deliver with runners on base. It certainly helps that one of the ways he has been known to deliver is via the long ball, but there is no denying that the guy can drive in runs with or without homers. The numbers don’t lie, and in his career, Alonso has an .895 OPS with runners on base, and he has been even better (.933) with runners in scoring position.

This is important given the state of the Orioles' lineup. They had some talented players to be sure, but lacked that lineup cornerstone outside of Gunnar Henderson that they could rely on night in, night out to produce. Alonso does have his flaws, but the Orioles clearly thought he could provide Henderson with a lineup companion that could consistently do damage. As a result, they were very clearly the most aggressive team in pursuing Alonso, and it sounds like they were far and away the team with the best offer.

Of course, that is the theory behind signing Alonso. The early spring returns are great, but Alonso is going to have to actually do the heavy lifting now that he is under contract for the deal to make sense. Boras may hype up his clients at every available opportunity, but that doesn't mean what he is selling them as is who they end up actually being.