Fernando Tatis Jr. Sues Shady Company Over Alleged Predatory Deals Targeting Young MLB Stars

Back in 2017, long before the fame and fortune, Fernando Tatis Jr. was in dire need of some extra money that would help him cover requirements like affording good food, hiring a personal trainer, and paying his house rent. That’s when BLA came to his rescue.

The Big League Advance Fund is a company that offers upfront financial assistance to young players. The catch is that a cut of players’ future MLB earnings will be taken by BLA.

The San Diego Padres outfielder was confident to sign the deal with them. In fact, just one year later, he admitted, “I’m not going to spend that money stupidly. You’ve got to be smart with your decisions, with what you’re going to do.” But now, years down the line, Tatis finds BLA a dangerous and shady system that preys on young players like his 2017 version.

Tatis has now filed a lawsuit against BLA in the San Diego County Superior Court. His lawsuit emphasizes serious accusations against the company. As per his team, BLA has been running an unlicensed lending business for years and it has not been monitored properly. Well, Tatis was in favor of it back in 2017, so what changed now?

Tatis signed a massive 14 year, $340 million contract with the San Diego Padres in 2021. Consequently, he owes millions to BLA because of the deal they signed back in 2017. Now, the lawsuit, apart from questioning the fairness of the contract, also challenged the base of BLA’s business model. Tatis’ legal team has alleged BLA is running its operations illegally and targeting young players with predatory deals.

“I’m fighting this battle not just for myself but for everyone still chasing their dream and hoping to provide a better life for their family.” Tatis said in his statement.

The lawsuit also revealed that back in January 2016, the MLB Players Association had already issued a warning about BLA. They reportedly sent a memo to the agents conveying that the association doesn’t approve of BLA’s operations. They also warned the agents about the big portion of a player’s earnings that the company takes.

To your surprise, it’s not just Fernando Tatis Jr who has pushed back against BLA. There’re others too.

Who all called out BLA apart from Tatis?

Former MLB player Francisco Mejia also filed a case against BLA. He alleged the company was using “unconscionable tactics” that influenced him to sign away 10% of his upcoming MLB earnings.

For signing away that amount, he received three amounts totaling $360,000. For the record, BLA doesn’t offer loans. It’s different. Just in case the player doesn’t make it to the big leagues, they don’t owe the company anything. As insane as it sounds, it is true. And well, if they make it to major leagues, the payback is staggering. More so if they become stars of the league.

Interestingly, the current CEO of BLA is none other than a former Phillies pitcher, Michael Schwimer. In a media appearance back in 2018, he defended the company by expressing the goal of it. The idea was to ultimately help minor league players in terms of finances.

However, Tatis and others, who are against the company, see it differently. What is your stance on BLA’s operations?