Robinson Cano is one of five professional athletes who is represented by Roc Nation, which is a sports agency founded by famous music artist Jay-Z. The athletes that he represents include, Robinson Cano, Keven Durant, Victor Cruz, Geno Smith, and Skylar Diggins. The contract that he was able to get Cano will undoubtedly put his agency, Roc Nation on the map and attract more athletes to it.
Throughout the regular season Jay-Z and his agency made it known that their asking price for Cano was going to be a 10 year contract worth over $300 million, but when Cano officially became a free agent, they dropped their asking price to $250 million. The New York Yankess are known for buying players away from other teams, that's how they got their nickname the "Evil Empire," but the tables were turned on them this time. The Yankees offered Cano a 9 year contract worth $170 million, and said they were unwilling to offer above $175 million. Seattle saw this as an opportunity to swoop in and steal Cano from New York with a higher offer, and that's exactly what they did.
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| Robinson Cano (left) and his agent Jay-Z (right) photo courtesy of Johnny Nunez/Getty Images |
The news of Cano signing with the Seattle Mariners over the New York Yankees was a shock to the entire baseball community. By signing with Seattle over New York, Cano is putting a huge risk on his chances of being able to play in the postseason and having a chance of winning a World Series. Seattle has been one of the worst baseball franchises recently, recording only one winning season in the last 6, including two 100+ loss seasons. This basically shows that professional sports is more of a business than most people think. Cano has spent his entire career in New York and is extremely loved by the fans there, but the chance to make $240 million instead of $175 million throws that all out the window.
Another aspect to remember in Cano's deal is his age. Cano is 31 years old, which means he will be 41 years old at the end of his contract. Seattle is taking a huge risk with the 10 year deal here, because once a player reaches the age of about 35, he is considered well past his prime.
It is going to take a few years before a decision is made on whether the deal was a success or a failure and waste of money, but making about $24 million a year is a lot to live up to, and it will be interesting if Robinson Cano, one of the best players in the MLB can do so. Everyone can agree that the true winner in this situation is Cano's agent Jay-Z and his agency Roc Nation. This deal will bring a lot of publicity to Roc Nation as a legitimate sports agency and draw more and more athletes to sign with him.
Personally, I believe that the Yankees did the right thing by not offering him a 10 year deal and refusing to give him more than $175 million. There have been to many instances in the past where these big year, big money deals have not worked out. Ex) Albert Pujols, Josh Hamilton, Alex Rodriguez, and Barry Zito. If you were in the Yankees front office, would you have let Cano walk? Or done everything you could have to get him to re-sign?
Personally, I believe that the Yankees did the right thing by not offering him a 10 year deal and refusing to give him more than $175 million. There have been to many instances in the past where these big year, big money deals have not worked out. Ex) Albert Pujols, Josh Hamilton, Alex Rodriguez, and Barry Zito. If you were in the Yankees front office, would you have let Cano walk? Or done everything you could have to get him to re-sign?
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