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Contract Negotiation MLB Players MLB Teams Sports Agents

Boston Globe Reporting At Its Finest

Great story in The Boston Globe detailing the entire contract negotiations between the Boston Red Sox and Daisuke Matsuzaka [Wooing of pitcher was wowing].

Who knows, maybe you can be as lucky as Scott Boras in a negotiation, and be given the gift of time (a clock) from upper management.

By the way, if you are not interested in the whole Matsuzaka/Red Sox story and want to cut directly to the Boras section, start reading on page 5 of the 6 page story.

Here’s an excerpt:

To maximize the deal, he [Boras] had to create a perception, and the one he sought to create was that Matsuzaka was an elite player and therefore should be paid like one, which in a baseball market flush with cash meant he should be paid like Roy Oswalt, who had just signed a four-year deal for $70 million, or maybe even be paid more.

Some say that Scott Boras was beat in this particular negotiation, but I am not sure that there has to be a distinct winner and loser in every negotiation. I think that all interested parties will end up benefiting from the agreement in the long run…even the Seibu Lions.

-Darren Heitner

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.