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Jeff Berry Wants An MLB Rule Change After Buster Posey Hit

Last week, San Francisco Giants catcher Buster Posey broke a bone in his lower left leg when he was hit by Florida Marlins’ Scott Cousins at home plate.  Posey was blocking the plate in the 12th inning as Cousins reached home, hoping to score the go-ahead run and earn a victory for his team.  In the process, Posey suffered the aforementioned injury, which will likely keep him out of the remainder of the 2011 Major League Baseball season.

Posey’s agent, Jeff Berry of Creative Artists Agency (CAA), was quick to attack MLB rules that allow for such contact.  Following Posey’s injury, Berry stated,

“You leave players way too vulnerable.  I can tell you Major League Baseball is less than it was before [Posey’s injury]. It’s stupid.  I don’t know if this ends up leading to a rule change, but it should. The guy [at the plate] is too exposed.

If you go helmet to helmet in the NFL, it’s a $100,000 fine, but in baseball, you have a situation in which runners are [slamming into] fielders.  It’s brutal.  It’s borderline shocking.  It just stinks for baseball.  I’m going to call Major League Baseball and put this on the radar.  Because it’s just wrong.”

We should expect nothing less from someone who advocates on behalf of his clients.  Furthermore, Berry is a former catcher himself, and knows well about the risk that catchers take by placing their body in front of a player coming full speed toward home plate.  Berry caught at the University of North Carolina Charlotte before playing a year in the Boston Red Sox minor league system.  He later earned a law degree at Oklahoma City University, which additionally helps with his ability to negotiate effectively.  With Casey Close’s departure from CAA, Berry became one of the co-head’s of CAA’s large baseball division.

By Darren Heitner

Darren Adam Heitner, Esq., is a preeminent sports attorney and the founder of Heitner Legal, P.L.L.C., a Fort Lauderdale-based law firm specializing in sports law, contract negotiations, intellectual property, and arbitration. He earned his Juris Doctor from the University of Florida Levin College of Law in 2010 and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, magna cum laude, from the University of Florida in 2007, where he was named Valedictorian of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Admitted to practice in the state bars of Florida, New York, and the District of Columbia, as well as multiple federal courts, Darren also serves as a certified arbitrator with the American Arbitration Association.

As an adjunct professor, Darren imparts his expertise through teaching Sports Law at the University of Florida Levin College of Law and Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) at the University of Miami School of Law in the Entertainment, Arts, and Sports Law LL.M. program. His scholarly contributions include authoring several books published by the American Bar Association, such as How to Play the Game: What Every Sports Attorney Needs to Know, and numerous articles in prominent publications like Forbes, Inc. Magazine, and Above the Law. His thought leadership in NIL has earned him recognition as one of the foremost experts by The Wall Street Journal, USA TODAY, and On3, and he has been lauded as a “power player in NIL deals” by Action Network and a “top sports trademark attorney” by Sportico.

Darren’s passion for sports law led him to establish Sports Agent Blog on December 31, 2005, initially titled “I Want To Be A Sports Agent.” The platform, created as a New Year’s resolution, has grown into a cornerstone of the sports agency community, offering in-depth analysis of industry trends, legal disputes, and agent-player dynamics. His commitment to the field is further evidenced by his representation of numerous athletes and sports agents, as well as his prior role as an Adjunct Professor at Indiana University Bloomington, where he developed and taught a course on Sport Agency Management from 2011 to 2014.

Darren’s contributions have been recognized with prestigious honors, including the University of Florida’s 40 Under 40 Award, the University of Florida Levin College of Law’s Outstanding Young Alumnus Award, and designation as the best lawyer in Fort Lauderdale by Fort Lauderdale Magazine. He remains an active voice in the sports law community, sharing insights through his weekly NIL newsletter and his X posts, engaging a broad audience on legal developments in sports.

4 replies on “Jeff Berry Wants An MLB Rule Change After Buster Posey Hit”

When will MLB tell Jeff Berry they have had enough of him and tell him to hit the road?!?!?!

When will MLB tell Jeff Berry they have had enough of him and tell him to hit the road?!?!?!

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