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Avi Sommer

Avi is an attorney for Under Armour primarily working with endorsements and brand management. He spent 2014 working for the Boston Red Sox in a Player Development & Professional Scouting role and, prior to that, he was a commercial litigation associate in a Baltimore law firm. He has wide-ranging professional experience in the sports world. Aside from the Red Sox, he has previously worked for the San Antonio Spurs, the National Football League, and the Baltimore Orioles. His writings have been published in the Sports Lawyers Journal and The Sports Lawyer. Avi graduated Cum Laude from Tulane University Law School with a certificate in Sports Law in 2012, after graduating with Honors from the University of Rochester in 2008 with a B.A. in History and Political Science.

Mock Draft-a-Palooza!

NFL: 2014 NFL Draft

What happens when a bunch of sports lawyers wish they were GMs? A mock draft in preparation for tonight's first round! We hope to beat Kiper/McShay. The Rams are on the clock!

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A Surprising MVP Candidate in Kansas City Royal Lorenzo Cain

Kansas City Royals center fielder Lorenzo Cain.  
Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

Lorenzo Cain put together an MVP caliber season in 2015. He may not win the award but a strong season and continued development year in and year out have made him a premier center fielder. His future earnings in 2016 and beyond should reflect that.

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The Impact of the Qualifying Offer this Off-Season

Matt Wieters

MLB's Collective Bargaining Agreement allows for teams to offer, through the Qualifying Offer, impending free agents a one-year contract in order to retain their services or receive a draft selection if they sign elsewhere. Major League teams could extend a record number of Qualifying Offers in the coming days.

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The Real Case of Service Time Manipulation

The Philadelphia Phillies recent demotion of Cody Asche to the Minor Leagues is an example of the MLBPA misplacing its focus on Major League debuts and overlooking actual Service Time Manipulation.

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And They’re Off…A Little Too Soon

How Pimlico Race Course and the MD Jockey Club bowed to the demands of their corporate TV partner and left themselves open to potential liability in the wake of severe thunderstorms pounding the 140th Preakness Stakes.

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Playing for Now and Paying it Later

How Max Scherzer’s contract with the Nationals helps the team’s finances while paying the pitcher more than the face value of the contract.

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Sports Esquires 2015 MLB Primer: Unheralded Prospects Likely to Contribute in the Big Leagues

Every year, World Series contenders end up relying on unlikely sources for crucial at-bats and big innings. Last year, Second Baseman Joe Panik played a significant role for the San Francisco Giants and Terrance Gore was a key reserve for the Kansas City Royals. Baseball America and MLB.com continually publish ‘Top 100 Prospect’ lists and rank every clubs’ best minor leaguers. Alternatively, the Sports Esquires examine unheralded prospects likely to help contending teams.

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The Emergence of the Qualifying Offer as a Legitimate Roster Building Tool and Salary Constraint

As Spring Training approaches another high profile free agent – Kansas City Royals pitcher James Shields – finds himself without a contract. Whether Shields has fallen victim to his age (33) or failure to live up to his “Big Game” James moniker there is no doubt that the Qualifying Offer made by the Kansas City Royals has affected his status on the open market.

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Why Deflategate Is Here to Stay

The National Football League has been unable to avoid negative media attention since the final whistle of last year’s Super Bowl. So for the sake of symmetry and irony, it’s perfect that the two weeks leading up to Super Bowl XLIX are steeped in controversy. To be honest, I don’t think the NFL, its media partner NBC (which is broadcasting this year’s game), or the advertisers particularly mind. Not that the Super Bowl needs controversy to generate an audience, but it would not surprise me to see this year’s game draw its highest ever TV rating – in part because people want to see how Tom Brady fares with a properly inflated ball.

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The Genius in Yoenis Cespedes’s Contract

An explanation of how Yoenis Cespedes is getting out of the last two years of team control under the Reserve System

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