Much is made of Scott Boras' affiliation with players. Many claim that Boras himself is ruining the game with some of his tactics, working the arbitration process, free agency, and the draft eligible players he advises in an effort to get the most money that he can.

However, when you think about it while setting your passion for baseball aside, can you really argue too much with such tactics? If the average Joe had an agent, or a head-hunter, wouldn't you want that person to get the most money for you as he or she could? Athletes are often compared to actors, given their relative placement in the entertainment industry, and there doesn't seem to be too much buzz when the biggest star in Hollywood will only appear in a movie for an astronomical, set price.

And how much can you blame the players and/or their agents for the amount of money they are making? No one forced the Tigers to give Magglio Ordonez and his recent, injured knee a five-year deal worth $75 million dollars. The same can be said for the contracts that Carlos Beltran, J.D. Drew and even Alex Rodriguez received, especially when it seemed as though no other team was even close to offering the kind of contracts these players eventually received.

I definitely understand and embrace the reasons why Scott Boras can be a frustrating part of baseball, a game that is deeply engrossed with its own history and the romantic aura that surrounds it. Fans of all ages endear themselves to players that identify their careers to the city and team that they play for. Cal Ripken Jr., Tony Gwynn, Kirby Puckett and Robin Yount embodied this notion, playing their entire career with only one team. You just don't see this dedication much, if at all, anymore, and when it comes to Scott Boras clients, hometown discounts are not in his vocabulary.

The draft is a whole different monster. Similar to free agency and the salary structure throughout Major League Baseball, there are no governing rules to help cap the amount a drafted player can sign for based on the slot selection any said player was taken at. Bud Selig and the commissioner's office have tried to encourage teams to only sign drafted players to bonus amounts that are pre-determined before draft day. Teams that do not follow these parameters may incur a penalty, but this penalty doesn't seem to be much more than a slap on the wrist.

Currently both Jered Weaver and Stephen Drew, two of the most talented players available for last year's draft, remain unsigned. It's no surprise that both of them are advised by Scott Boras. Trying to think objectively, I don't have a problem with either one holding out trying to get as much money as possible at this point in time, because really you don't know when you're next contract will be your last. However, such a holdout could impede their development. With pitchers and catchers currently reporting to spring training, with minor leaguers to report within a matter of weeks, delaying the start of their professional careers only postpones their projected time of arrival on the big league scene, if they're fortunate enough to make it that far.

Weaver reportedly is asking for money comparable to what Mark Prior received in 2001, which was a Major League contract worth $10.5 million dollars which included a $4 million dollar bonus. While this is an aggressive aspiration, I think it's safe to say that no player should be compared to Mark Prior, who really was one of a kind.

For Drew, Rickie Weeks' 2003 big-league contract with the Milwaukee Brewers (worth at least $4.8 million, including a $3.6 million dollar signing bonus) reportedly is in the neighborhood of what he and Boras are asking for from the Arizona Diamondbacks. Again, I don't think it's hard to argue that Drew, as talented as he is, just isn't on the same level as Rickie Weeks at the same stage of their careers.

Of course it's up to the teams to hold their ground and not to give into these demands. They have to be careful not to do it collectively, as the player's union will start blaming the owners of collusion. Although since drafted players don't fall under the labor agreement, collusion isn't really a factor. In addition, unsigned draftees aren't on the open market like free agents are, meaning only the team that drafted them have exclusive negotiating rights. How far apart are the Angels and Weaver at this point in time? How far apart were they at the end of last summer? The same questions apply to Drew, leading into the next question: Is the holdout for the money they're hoping to get versus the money that they will eventually get worth the trouble while losing valuable development time? And what happens if Weaver and Drew remained unsigned and they re-enter this June's draft? Can they really expect to make the kind of money they're looking for, or even what the Angels and Diamondbacks are currently offering?

Signability concerns certainly aren't limited to players associated with Scott Boras, but he always seems to push any and all limits. While San Diego may have passed on both Weaver and Drew last summer, they also passed on Jeff Niemann. The Pittsburgh Pirates passed on B.J. Upton with the first overall selection in 2002 and selected Bryan Bullington, when many considered Upton to be the best player available of all 2002 draft-eligible players. Baseball America recently listed the top 10 holdouts for drafted players that eventually ended up signing, and it's not surprising that five of the players were advised by Boras.

The biggest question of all is if the headache of dealing with such players is worth the reward. Since there are so many factors that work against even the most sure-fire draft prospects, the amount of money invested in such players has to be invested wisely. For every Mark Prior there is a Brien Taylor. For every Alex Rodriguez there is a Josh Hamilton. As good as Jered Weaver and Stephen Drew were in college, and project to be at the pro level, is it worth calling Scott Boras' bluff and waiting to see if he blinks first? For some players, their talent may not be in question, such as Mark Teixeira in 2001, when the affiliation with Boras doesn't become as big of an issue. However, for players like Weaver and Drew, both of whom had substantial question marks about their overall abilities, the risk to so many teams just doesn't seem to be worth the reward, which is why Weaver fell to the Angels with the 12^th overall pick last June and Drew fell to the Diamondbacks and the 15^th overall selection.

For this coming draft, we have already learned that Boras once again will play a big factor on the draft by advising some of the best college players available in Luke Hochevar, Mike Pelfrey, Tyler Greene, Mark McCormick and Jason Neighborgall. All of those players outside of Hochevar were considered high drafts coming out of high school, and all proved to be too rich for their drafting team's blood. Even if they are considered some of the best players in the nation, it will be interesting to see where they fall. If some to all of these players do indeed fall despite being universally thought of as some of the best players in the nation, is the draft accomplishing what it was set up to do, which is to give the worst teams from the previous year a better opportunity to draft the best amateur players? It's no surprise that the teams picking towards the top of the draft each and every year are also the ones that don't have the money to spend on high profile free agents, much less draft picks. That isn't to be used as an excuse for their failure, but it can be used as evidence for the need of change to the economic landscape in baseball from top to bottom. Given the problems MLB is going to face from the player's union trying to implement a salary cap, it would be a good idea to start with the draft, easing changes in slowly but surely from the bottom up.

Prep outfield talent, an addition

I received a friendly email that brought up a notable omission to my list of talented high school outfield prospects: Kent Matthes. While there are plenty of players that could be listed in addition to the players I originally listed last week, Matthes is more notable given his status as an AFLAC All-American. He was somewhat of an oversight on my list because he is often listed as an infielder, playing both shortstop and third base at Edgewater High School in Orlando, Florida.

Matthes is a power/power player, given his amazing arm strength and power at the plate. While his arm is an asset in the infield, many scouts consider him an outfielder at the professional or even college level. Matthes is a very good athlete overall, blessed with a strong build and very good speed, and he might have the best arm of any prep positional prospect available for the 2005 draft. His build, athleticism and current power potential makes him an exciting offensive prospect at either the professional or college level, and a natural fit for right field.