Pat “The Bat” Signed by Rays Pat Burrell, the hard-hitting, ex-slugger of the defending world champion Philadelphia Phillies now has a new home: the Tampa Bay Rays. The Rays and Burrell have agreed to a 2-year, $16-million deal. It is also reported that Burrell will donate a portion of his contract to the Rays’ Baseball Foundation which is the official charity of the Rays.
The 32-year old Burrell is likely to be the Rays’ designated hitter. Last year with the Phils, Burrell hit .250 with 33 home runs, 86 RBIs and 102 walks in 157 games.
Burrell had hoped to sign back with the Phillies this year but those dreams were shattered after they signed outfielder Raul Ibanez.
It’s The Most Wonderful Salary Arbitration Time Of The Year Right now, we are right in the thick of the MLB salary arbitration filing period, which will last until January 15. During this time, players with three to five years of major league experience (there is an exception for certain players with two years experience - “Super Twos”) can file with the hope that a panel of arbitrators will grant them a pay raise. Last year, Ryan Howard tied a record with his arbitration award of $10 million. For every Ryan Howard, there are more players who submit high numbers that end up taking much less than desired. Baseball’s system is final-offer arbitration, which means that the arbitration panel must select either the player’s suggestion or the team’s proposal. There is no in-between.
Most players who will file by January 15 will probably never have their case go to arbitration. Often times, both the player and his organization settle before the February hearings. MLB teams have a solid record compared to the professional athletes. Thus, many times, an athlete’s advisor will push the player for a settlement. But this is not always the case.
It is likely that Ryan Howard will once again test the arbitration waters. He may also have fellow teammate, Cole Hamels, join him in hoping that a panel of arbitrators gives him a nice New Years present. There is no doubt that Hamels is undervalued at $500,000 for a season, but just how much is Hamels worth? Eight Phillies, in total, are eligible for arbitration. It looks like the arbitrators may be flooded by Phillies cases alone. I hope that Philly’s General Counsel, Bill Webb, enjoyed the Holidays, because he sure does have his work cut out for him this month.
Job Opening At Madison Square GardenInterested in a full-time freelance marketing job at Madison Square Garden? They are currently looking to hire someone who has a strong background with HTML to help support their email marketing campaigns for MSG Entertainment. If you think you have what it takes, read on. Let them know that you got the information from SportsAgentBlog.com.
MSG INTERACTIVE- FREELANCE E-MAIL MARKETING COORDINATOR
Candidate will create and execute email marketing campaigns and communications for MSG Entertainment (concert pre sales, on sales, post show, etc). This includes proofreading copy, building e-mails using an HTML editor, resizing images as needed, scheduling blasts, and building event promotional pages on a content management system. In addition the candidate will help analyze data from email matchback reports and work with the ad sales department to coordinate ad tags. The candidate will work closely with the marketing departments from all departments in order to support online/viral marketing initiatives. All candidates should have a strong HTML background and be highly organized.
This is a full time freelance position with strong probability of overtime. Recent grads are encouraged to apply. Please send a resume to msginteractive1@gmail.com
REQUIREMENTS:
- Strong working knowledge of HTML and content management systems
- Familiar with Adobe Dreamweaver
- Working knowledge of Adobe Photoshop
- Ability to perform well under pressure, meet deadlines, and prioritize workload
- Strong organizational skills and attention to detail
1/7/09 News & Notes1/5/09
Tennessee Tech (Steve Payne) (8-5) vs. Eastern Illinois
Alex Davis had career highs with 13 points and 10 rebounds to lead Tennessee Tech to a 67-60 victory over Eastern Illinois on Monday night. Daniel Northern added 10 points and 11 rebounds, but the Golden Eagles (8-5, 2-1 Ohio Valley Conference) had to hold off Eastern Illinois (5-9, 2-2) after building a 16-point lead. Tennessee Tech held a 64-48 advantage with 4:33 left in the game, but the Panthers twice cut the advantage to six points in the final minute before the Golden Eagles went 3 of 4 from the line. Tennessee Tech built its lead on a 16-1 run in the second half. DJ Lindsay added 15 points, Will Barnes scored 13 points and Frank Davis had 10 for the Golden Eagles.
Southeast Missouri (Rodney Hamilton) (3-12) vs. Jacksonville State
Jacksonville State defeated Southeast Missouri State 71-66 on Monday night. The Gamecocks (8-4, 2-1 Ohio Valley Conference) jumped out to a 13-2 lead with 15:34 left in the first half and led 41-24 at halftime. The Redhawks (3-12, 0-4) closed the deficit to 69-66 with 9 seconds left to play on two Bijon Jones free throws, but Jacksonville hit clutch free throws to seal the game for the Gamecocks. Calvin Williams led the Redhawks with his second straight double-double with 20 points, 13 rebounds and four blocked shots.
1/6/09
NCCU (Henry Dickerson) (0-17) vs. Colgate
Colgate got a 68-58 win against North Carolina Central on Tuesday night. Jamar Briscoe led the Eagles (0-17) with 15 points and Bryan Ayala added 13. The Eagles, whose last win came on March 15 in last season’s finale, hit just 3 of 17 attempts from beyond the arc in the loss. The Raiders were 2-for-8 from long range. Colgate shot 56.1 percent from the field (23 of 41) in the game compared to a 36.4 percent mark (20 of 55) for N.C. Central. The Raiders, who led by nine points at the break, started the second half on a 12-6 run.
Savannah State (Horace Broadnax) (7-8) vs. Oklahoma State
Oklahoma State glided past Savannah State on Tuesday night by a score of 83-56. Savannah State was led by Forward Chris Linton, who posted 16 points and 6 rebounds in the Tigers’ losing effort. Rashad Hassan came off the bench to add 12 points.
Book Review: Your Dream Job Game PlanI have said it time and time again, so if you are any sort of regular reader in these parts of the web, you know that my first foray into the sports agent profession was as an intern at Career Sports & Entertainment. The President of the Client Representation division at CS&E is Molly Fletcher, who I was able to work with plenty of times during my time at the company. I learned more from Molly about the industry than any single person at CS&E. Part of the reason is because she was the go-to person for every sport, so my work had to be up to her standards on every project. Another reason is because she always welcomed me into her office and was happy to share any information that my inquisitive mind would wonder about. When I heard that Molly was writing a book, I made sure that her publisher knew to send me a copy pronto.
Your Dream Job Game Plan: 5 tools for becoming your own career agent is Molly’s first attempt at being an author. The book is easy to read and straight to the point. It will tell you the do’s and don’ts when it comes to trying to trying to get your dream job. Molly takes you into her own life, explaining how she got to where she is today, and then offers tips on how to create your own kind of success in business. She offen uses sports and her clients as examples to stress certain points. Being a five-tool player is not only for athletes.
 Your Dream Job Game Plan is a good read for young, driven people who want to learn more about what it takes to succeed in this very competitive job market. While I did not ever really get immersed in the book and actually had a little trouble getting through the whole thing, it offers some great tips for those about to approach a job interview, write a resume, or enter an important meeting. Everything that Molly writes is true, but if you have already gone through a lot of the motions, then you may feel like skipping certain sections. However, anyone who applies for an internship at Dynasty, should really read it. You do not know how many resumes I receive with spelling errors or that look sloppy. Also, in an introduction email with your resume attached, the last thing you want to do is come off impersonal, as if you are sending the same email to twenty different companies. And NEVER send my HR department an email with ten other HR department emails in the same byline. Common sense, people!
Anyway, if you are interested in possibly gaining an edge among the competition when it comes to building relationships, networking, being proper, etc, then Your Dream Job Game Plan is the book for you.
Flacco’s Play into PayDay A while back ago I wrote a post titled, Kudos, Joe Linta. It pointed out how beneficial it is to get your client signed and into training camp on time, especially for a quarterback fighting for a starting spot. As the Baltimore Ravens try to earn their first postseason berth since 2006, rookie quarterback Joe Flacco has already received a hefty Christmas bonus.
Flacco recently earned an additional $3 million in bonuses based on his first-year performance. Flacco eclipsed a huge playing-time escalator in his contract of participating in 80 percent of Baltimore’s snaps as a rookie. $750,000 will be added to his base salary for the remaining four years of his contract. Additionally, he will receive another $200,000 for every playoff game he wins. Hence, as of Sunday, he is $200,000 richer.
Flacco signed an incentive-laden, five-year deal worth up to $30 million in July, but this was one clause few anticipated him earning. Preseason ailments to Kyle Boller and Troy Smith gave Flacco the starting quarterback job by attrition at the beginning of the year. Flacco has started all 15 games and thrown for 2,674 yards, 14 touchdowns and 12 interceptions.
It goes to show that sometimes the best course of action is to get your guy in camp and give him the opportunity to earn his money. If Flacco did not make it into camp on time, who knows how things would have turned out. I believe this showed a lot of confidence in both Linta and Flacco that he could win the job and in turn, earn the bonuses that were put into the contract.
Moorad Adds More To The Resume Jeff Moorad got a strong start in the business of sports. He worked alongside Leigh Steinberg in the 1980s, representing high profile NFL and MLB athletes. After roughly twenty years of acting as a sports agent, Moorad decided to venture to the other side of the negotiating table. He became General Partner and CEO of the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2004 and led the team to a few successful years while balancing its payroll and hiring young blood to help manage the club. Those days of roaming the desert are over for Mr. Moorad. He has resigned as CEO of the Diamondbacks and is in negotiations to purchase a division rival of Arizona, the San Diego Padres.
This is obviously strictly a business decision by Jeff Moorad. He wants to gain strength, moving from a General Partner and CEO to majority owner of a Major League organization. It just so happens that the club he is looking to buy is in the same division as the team he helped grow over the past four years. Moorad is proof that just because you are an agent, does not mean you are limited to that profession for the rest of our life. Make enough money and you too could be a majority owner of an MLB team.
Rulon Davis UpdateSome good news to pass on about Rulon Davis:
- He arrived in Florida yesterday and is now residing in South Florida, training at Athletes Advantage.
- He has been formally invited to participate in the Texas vs. The Nation All-Star Game. We are still awaiting word on the East-West Shrine Game and the Senior Bowl. along with the NFL Combine. At 9:06 a.m. EST, I had the pleasure of hearing the great news that Rulon has been invited to the NFL Combine! This is great news that we will all be celebrating.
- Rulon had a fantastic interview with Gregory Cox of TheFootballExpert.com that is now posted on that website.
- Rulon’s 2nd Yardbarker post is up. Go check out his first ru-ism.
Cubs Sign Bradley Center fielder Milton Bradley has a new home nowadays. The Chicago Cubs have agreed to a 3-year, $30-million contract with Bradley. In order to make some room for Milton, the Cubs have to finalize the deal that will send Jason Marquis to the Rockies for Luis Vizcaino.
Last year, Bradley batted .321 with 22 home runs while playing for the Texas Rangers. In a nine year career with 6 different teams, Bradley has batted .280 with 103 home runs and 399 RBIs.
Kevin Keathley Named Coach Of The Month For December The Continental Basketball Association recently announced that East Kentucky Miners Head Coach Kevin Keathley was named the December Coach of the Month for his team’s performance in the past month.
The Miners finished the month with a 6-0 record against ABA opponents. They started their season on the road against the Kentucky Bisons in Owensboro before moving onto a five game home stand.
The Miners first hosted the West Virginia Blazers and defeated them 140-94 (7-0) and 119-87 (7-0). The Bisons then made a trip to Pikeville with revenge on their minds, but were unsuccessful as they lost 132-106 (6.5 - .5) to the Miners. The West Virginia Wild were the next opponent on the Miners schedule, but they did little damage to the Miners as they lost 154-111 (7-0) and 172-70 (7-0).
“Coach Keathley has started the season on a hot streak and has a team that is a good mix of established veterans and up and coming pros,” said CBA Commissioner Dennis Truax. “They will be a formable team the whole season and will be a tough team to beat.”
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