Move over Jay Z, there’s a new entertainer-turned agent in town.
Marc Anthony — the singer, actor and former husband of Jennifer Lopez — is teaming with a baseball agency (Praver Shapiro Sports Management) to bring sports representation into his Magnus Media company. Anthony’s first prominent client will be Cincinnati Reds closer Aroldis Chapman, as reported by Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports.
According to Rosenthal, Praver Shapiro, which currently represents many Latin-born Major-Leaguers, will negotiate contracts, while Anthony will help elevate players’ brands through marketing.
Chapman is certainly a good get for Anthony and company. The 27-year-old closer has a 2.17 ERA and 146 saves through six MLB seasons and will be a free agent after the 2016 season for the first time since he signed with the Reds out of Cuba in 2010. Chapman has the highest strikeout rate in baseball history and owns the record for fastest pitch ever recorded.
Anthony apparently will focus specifically on Latin players. From Fox Sports:
“Baseball, like music, is an ingrained cultural passion for many Latinos throughout the world, and there’s no shortage of amazing stars of Hispanic origin,” Anthony said.
“Despite that, until now there hasn’t been an enterprise specifically designed to meet their needs. With Magnus Sports, we are changing the existing dynamics and building a new kind of management company that understands the culture and knows how to build big media brands.
“Beyond the cultural connection, social media also is bringing fans closer to their heroes than ever before. That means that athletes, like other entertainers, need management that can help them with both, managing their career and building a brand.”
Given Jay Z’s success in sports representation — his Roc Nation Sports reps Kevin Durant, Dez Bryant, Robinson Cano and others — it was only a matter of time before other entertainers would jump into the game.
