Alvarez Agrees on Contract ... Again ... Finally

Somehow, I think no one is going to remember this in five years.

At least it's over now ... maybe. Pedro Alvarez signed a new contract with the Pirates that should end his holdout and grievance. However, there a few fishy things about this. First, this is essentially a deal signed after the deadline, just like the other one except this one is egregiously after the deadline. Why does this one count? Second, why did the Pirates give in? They gave him the major-league contract. If they really did have the upper hand, shouldn't they have just stuck to their guns? Or, are they trying to get him signed so that he can Winter Ball? That would help determine just how good he is, and therefore, he could move quickly through the system. However, they and everyone else already figured he would move quickly, so maybe, they would have to wait an extra few months. Still, I think they could have started him in AA if they really wanted to. Third, how much did Scott Boras play in the final negotiations? Did Alvarez go over his head to get it done, or was the major-league contract what Boras really wanted? I'm not sure, but I think he probably wanted the bigger bonus instead. Maybe not. Oh well, I guess he can just get back to playing baseball, which he would have essentially been able to do for the past month and a half.