From 1965-2001, 961 players in total had been selected in the 2nd round of the MLB Amateur Drafts. Of those 961 players, 876 signed and accepted the signing bonuses proposed by the teams that picked them. 413, or 47.1% of those 876 players eventually played at least one game in the Major Leagues. Only 266, or 30.4%, played in the Majors for more than 3 years. Garrett Berger cares little about statistics, though. He was selected in the 2nd round of 2001 by the Florida Marlins, blew out his elbow, and never made it to the big stage. But he may end up doing more for baseball now that he is off of the field of play.
Garrett is the founder of iFungo.com, which boasts “We Sell Pro Equipment”, prominently on its home page. If you play the game of baseball or represent a baseball player, this site has it all. Bags, gloves, bats, sunglasses, and more. And almost every brand you can think of is listed on the site. It is easy to use and the prices seem to be very competitive.
There are a couple of things to take away from Garrett’s story.
- As an agent, you must prepare your client, even if he is drafted as high as the 2nd round, for life after his/her sport. All it takes is one injury to end your client’s career. What then? Will he/she be ready to enter the world that the rest of us have to survive in?
- There are opportunities out there for the well-known athletes and those who never make it to the peak of their sport. Garrett is a perfect example.
