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Need a Baseball Agent?
Better Read This.
As things go in baseball history, the emergence of agents is a new concept. In fact, the Agent Certification System
has existed since 1988…less than twenty years. Agents were around for several years before that, but were unregulated.
The results were chaotic and gave the game a black eye.
So how does this affect you? Keep reading.
The Draft comes up every June. If you're a young player reading this, please have your parents read it with you.
Mom and Dad, does your son want to get scouted? Does he hope to get drafted? Will you advise him about signing
a pro baseball contract? Think getting a baseball agent will help him with all this? WATCH OUT! Read on, then catch
the rest in the book so your son's career baseball dreams won't become nightmares.
Because of the money on the table today in professional sports, everyone agrees that athletes will need the services
of agents at some point in their career. Baseball agrees that agents are now as much a part of the game as second
basemen; yet, there's always reference to "the agent problem." What problem? In a nutshell, agents cost
the organizations LOTS of money.
But don't be fooled. That's baseball's problem. Your son's problem could be much bigger! You wonder about WHEN
to get an agent and HOW to get a good one. If you think getting him an agent in high school, college or junior
college will help your son get drafted, you are grossly misinformed, and you could cost him his chance to get drafted.
Having an agent automatically changes a player's status from amateur to professional, which makes him permanently
ineligible for the draft. WHY? Because the pro baseball draft process is for amateur players only.
Who are agents?
According to Gene Orza, Associate General Council, Major League Players' Association (MLPA):
"An agent is the individual who is authorized by the Association to negotiate salaries over and above the
minimum salary, and special covenants over and above the Basic Agreement provided on behalf of that player."
There's several ways to get agents, and there are strict conditions, regulations, and procedures involved in the
process. Be sure to read it carefully in the book.
OKAY, you now are on alert about when NOT to get an agent. So, when to get one? All of baseball agrees there's
only one answer to that question: GET AN AGENT WHEN YOU NEED ONE.
Remember………. nobody needs an agent before he gets drafted.
Ozzie Smith,
former Major League player, Cardinals; member, Hall of Fame: "I didn't
get an agent until my Major League debut. You don't really need an agent till then because you're concentrating
on just playing the game in Minor League baseball. But once you're in the big leagues with all the big contracts
and legal stuff, well, we definitely need someone to handle those aspects of the career."
Andre Dawson:
"I didn't actually hire my first agent until after my rookie season in the Major Leagues. In my rookie year
in the majors I was just making Major League minimum. But after being selected Rookie of the Year, I decided it
was time to have an agent."
Robin Ventura,
Major League player: "I didn't have an agent when I signed out of college
and I was a first round pick. But maybe a first round pick should have one because the chances are good you're
going to sign. And, in that case, it might be to your advantage to have an agent for that."
Frank Thomas,
Major League player: "I was drafted as a junior at Auburn University,
first round, seventh in the country, 1989. I got an agent right after I was drafted. Several agents contacted me
and we met and talked. I also checked with the Players' Association before I signed on an agent."
Mike Gorman,
former Minor League pitcher, A's, Tigers: "Some of the fellas may need
an agent early in their Minor League careers because they're fairly high draft picks, first through seventh or
so, and they may have negotiated for a large amount of money. In my case, I was a senior in college and so my alternative
was to play or be done with baseball. I was a twenty-first pick so I really didn't need an agent."
Who are agents? What are their qualifications? How to get an agent? What services can agents provide? What items
are included in the player-agent contract? How much do they get paid? What's the Agent Certification System? Should
you keep the same agent your entire career?
Did you know the job has no academic requirements? Does that mean you or I could get some business cards printed
and call ourselves "agents"? Not in this lifetime!
Now you have the questions. Find the answers in the book, including the personal story of perhaps the most famous
agent of them all, Scott Boras. |
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