Most Powerful Man in Baseball!
We went to an evening with super agent Scott Boras at the Museum of Natural History Baird Auditorium, presented by the Smithsonian Associates. We snapped the agent to many stars, often called the most powerful man in baseball.
He signed Bryce Harper to a $9.9 million contract with the Nats while he was still a teenager. But that’s pocket money compared to the $214 million, nine-year deal he snagged for the Tigers’ Prince Fielder. Here, Hyman Phelps' John Gilbert and Jeffrey Gibbs flank Washington Legal Fund’s Richard Samp and his wife JoElla.
When asked if a client ever took less money for an opportunity to win a championship, he mentioned Greg Maddux, recently inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame, who left the Chicago Cubs, a city and team he loved, for less money with the Atlanta Braves, which had a better chance to win a championship, which he did in 1995. Here, former Washington Senators stadium announcer Phil Hochberg, who led a panel with Boras.
Boras has done more $200-million-plus deals in the history of baseball (three) than anyone. He said his job is to represent his clients’ interests, which he thinks is justified when he looks at how Major League Baseball's revenues continue to rise. Here, the Nats TV and radio host and veteran sportscaster Phil Wood, and the Washington Post’s Adam Kilgore.
