Question about "Advisors"?

JT ---

Our son hooked up with an advisor for added exposure. Not being a flame thrower, but nevertheless a good pitcher, it helped to have someone out there who knew the scouts, who knew the organizations and what and how they drafted. He was also a good encourager when our son had a minor injury and had to sit out the last 4 weeks of his junior season, sitting down and talking with all of us about what might happen and what approach they might need to take if the draft didn't go the way our son was hoping.

For those players and parents who are trying to navigate a rather confusing process, having someone in their corner to 'splain it all' is very helpful. And advice on signing bonuses and college funding were also welcome after the draft.

Just our experience ... FWIW

they answer the questions you can't get the answer's to here, as well.

Many of the showcase teams give this support to their players

Unfortunately there is a business side to all of this baseball nonsense. Don't rely on a coach from a select team to guide you through the business aspect of what might be coming down the pike. These advisors, for the most part deal with this stuff to put food on the table and keep a roof over their family's head.

Do your homework on the person and firm that wants to represent your son. There are sheister's in every walk of life. Agent/Advisors are no different. Ask for references and make them do what they say they will do, otherwise "next" them. There are many that will talk a good game and I guess that is what they do, so make them back it up.

So basically, the advisor can be a good PR person, in addition to helping with the business aspect.

quote:

Originally posted by JT:
So basically, the advisor can be a good PR person, in addition to helping with the business aspect.

Absolutely!

In a sense, compare it to selling your house. You could accomplish it without a real estate agent. But, did you maximize your profit by getting the best price? It can be done, but did you cover everything? I dunno???

Correct me if I'm wrong...

There is not a lot of money at stake for the later round guys. Actually, none until the advisor is signed as an agent. (Same guy, but now there is a contract.) There is probably little expense at the outset (I'm guessing 5% of not-a-lot is not-a-lot at all) and thus, not much to interest an advisor/agent. For these guys, it's all about the future income potential.

The book, "License to Deal" gives a lot of insight to the process from an agent/advisor's perspective. It's worth reading.

I'll add that an advisor is more appropriate for a player who'll have a realistic chance of being drafted in the first 10 or so rounds, than those who aren't likely to go that high. If you get drafted later on, you can always find an advisor/agent if needed at that point. Typically, the players who actually need them are going to be the higher round guys.

I'll also say to do your homework before choosing who you'd want to have advise/represent you. There are plenty of advisors out there who might do more harm than good. As an example, there was a high school player from our area who was a legitimate prospect a year ago. Problem was, most scouts and teams looked at him as a 7th-10th round type pick. The boy wanted to sign, not go to college, but he followed his advisor's recommendation and resisted giving out a signing bonus number that he was seeking. When he realized that he wasn't going to be drafted by anyone if he didn't have a price in mind, he threw out a cost that was basically 3rd to 4th round money. That unrealistic financial expectation turned everyone away from him, and he went undrafted. If he had a qualified advisor who would have worked to find out where scouts saw him, he could have advised the boy as to what to expect. Instead he told him to seek a much higher value than any team was willing to pay, without any justification tied to his ability or likely draft slot. The advisor told the boy (I got this from the kid's mom) that if a club didn't spend X amount on the bonus, then they wouldn't have much interest in developing him, especially if he started slow. Following his theory, which is completely wrong, clubs wouldn't need to draft beyond the 5th round, as they wouldn't develop any of the players whom they take in later rounds and to whom they pay lower bonuses.

He wanted to turn pro, but is now playing in jr. college. It's early in the season, but it'll be interesting to see if he's as highly regarded for this year's draft.

Last year, there were almost NO high school players drafted who actually signed from Northern California. The single most common reason I've heard given was "unrealistic bonus expectations." That comes from advisors/agents not properly preparing their prospective client on what is realistic and what to expect.

I have seen more players career ruined by some extremely stupid agents.

A few Bonehead draft advice by agents

1)turned down 1.2 million out of HS, said it is gonna be there after college.After 3 years and 2 colleges, cans the agent. signed for $300,000, the pitcher got lit up 6 times I saw him pitch. Last 2 years of pro ball.

2) Turns down 3.95 million, then 5.3 Million MLb contract to play indy ball released 3 times.Fires agent. Signs 7 years later for ZERO money ,released in spring training, Back in indy ball.

3) Turns down 5 million in HS, signs for 500,000.Career ends after 3 years of pro ball.


A little pointer to playerts keep your mouth shut on money. say top ten rounds and get drafted as high as possible then talk $$$$.

there are a ton of storys out there. our experience was a little different. when asked how much money? my answer was .if you want him draft him. the teams called and asked if we would take x amount of money for x round, right up until draft morning.

infidel
that is a great read.i thought so anyway.

JT, there are some things that go on behind the scenes between the “agent” (acting as an advisor) and MLB that could help or hurt the high school player. It all comes down to the integrity of the agent/advisor and his ethicality. As an educator you know the educator (advisor) plays a big part in influencing the student (player) and how they perceive the “situation” therefore the advisor can lead the player safely through the minefield or to the slaughterhouse. Understand too that an advisor stands to make money immediately if the player goes pro and signs a pro contract. The advisor then “transforms” into an agent and takes his cut. Bottom line: “Free advice is good --- Greed is bad”.
Fungo

Frankmartin/Andy, I have to disagree with you about keeping your mouth shut when asked how much money it'll take to sign you. Scouts, and clubs, are in this as a business. Scouts, if they convince their club to draft too many guys whom they think they'll be able to sign for X amount, and then find out the kid wanted a lot more but the scout never found out, they can lose their jobs over this stuff.

It's all part of clearly communicating. If you don't want to sign, be honest about it and go to college. If it'll take $100K to get you to sign, be honest about it. If your number is $1MM, which is basically saying 1st round or nothing, and not enough kids understand that, be honest about it.

Keep in mind that bonus money is Failure money. If you sign and have a successful career, your bonus money likely won't be the biggest part of your financial results over time. The signing bonus comes into play much more for those who don't make it, than for those who do.

Another thought, if you want to play professionally then maybe you should do it regardless of the dollars involved, or lack thereof. If the only reason you'd sign is because you'll be exceeding a financial threshold when signing, you're doing it for the wrong reason, and very possibly won't be playing for many years.

I believe that the role of the Advisor/Agent is to act on behalf of the player. However, some of the Advisor/Agents spread themselves too thin, by agreeing to assist too many players. As a result, the "fringe players" receive less attention, then the ones with more press. I define a "fringe player" as an undiscovered prospect, such as an Allen Craig type player. Whether highly sought or not, most players drafted in rounds 1-15 need an agent. I believe the measuring stick for agents should be how he handles the unknown draft pick,not the one Baseball America and Perfect Game are raving about. Sometimes having a high profile agent even though not a high profile player can help for purposes of publicity. However, a player must produce. Therefore, production whether positive whether good or bad will be noticed by the team. The question is, when the times get rough will you be able to get through to your agent and not his voicemail or secretary.

I was a baseball Dad until the kids advisor got involved in his college Soph year. At that point I realized that I didn't know as much as I thought and reverted back to the best job in the world, that being JUST Dad.

Thanks, all. Good stuff. I are now better edju-ma-cated about the biz-niz side of the game.

rz

isn't it funny how quickly we find out how much we don't know ? i'm with you on the best job too.