Padres star Fernando Tatis, Jr. is taking legal action against Big League Advance, claiming the future earnings contract he signed with the company at 18 was predatory.
Tatis, 26, claims BLA signed him to an illegal loan masked as an investment opportunity while he was in the minor leagues.
BLA is a company that invests in minor leaguers to help them stay afloat during their early careers, but takes a cut of their major league earnings. Its website says it has signed more than 700 athletes since its founding in 2016. For players like Tatis, who signed a 14-year, $340 million deal in 2021, the backpay to BLA can be massive.
Tatis received $2 million from BLA in exchange for 10% of future earnings, his attorney said, meaning he would owe them $34 million from his current deal alone. The suit also claims BLA hid its unlicensed status from Tatis, and “failed to adequately disclose” the deal’s 90% annual interest rate. BLA demanded payments from Tatis as soon as he was called up to the major leagues in 2019, which he sent, the filing says.
“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 a statement. “I want to help protect those young players who don’t yet know how to protect themselves from these predatory lenders and illegal financial schemes—kids’ focus should be on their passion for baseball, not dodging shady business deals.”
Tatis filed his suit Monday in San Diego County circuit court.
“These deceptive practices, coupled with a rushed signing process and inadequate legal counsel arranged by [BLA], exploited [Tatis’s] youth and inexperience, locking him into an unlawful and exploitative arrangement,” the complaint reads.
A representative for BLA did not immediately return a request for comment.
Tatis received an 80-game suspension in 2022 for use of performance-enhancing drugs. Hailing from the Dominican Republic, he is a Golden Glove Award winner and two-time All-Star. His father, Fernando Tatis Sr., spent 11 seasons in MLB from 1997 to 2010.
