An already messy battle between the Major League Baseball Players Association and a player agency backed by the musician Bad Bunny is escalating.
The MLBPA on Friday asked a federal judge in Puerto Rico to hold Rimas Sports in contempt for defying an order the court gave last week to follow union rules. Rimas has instead requested arbitration from the wrong entity, under the wrong arbitration rules, and in the wrong venue, the union said.
“The MLBPA is mindful of the gravity of a contempt order, but Plaintiff’s defiance calls for nothing less,” the union wrote in its court filing.
The MLBPA, which certifies baseball player agents, accused Rimas of giving out cash and concert tickets improperly to players. Multiple Rimas employees were sanctioned in April: one, William Arroyo, had his certification revoked, and two others, Noah Assad and Jonathan Miranda, were forbidden from becoming certified. Benito Martinez, better known as Bad Bunny, is an investor in the agency.
Rimas in May then accused the MLBPA of trying to destroy its business and asked for a federal judge to intervene. The judge last week ruled in favor of the MLBPA, saying that the dispute should be handled according to the union’s agent regulations.
Now, the MLBPA says Rimas is defying that order.
“Its latest act of defiance — now, not only defiance of the MLBPA Regulations, but this Court’s Order — is nothing short of contemptuous,” the union said in its filing. “Rimas Sports has already forced the MLBPA to incur substantial litigation costs to hold Plaintiff to the arbitration agreement it made. Now Rimas Sports seeks to have the MLBPA do this all over again before an arbitrator and pursuant to arbitration procedures to which the MLBPA never agreed.”
Rimas went to the American Arbitration Association to request a hearing, when a request should have been made through the PA, the union said. Rimas also asked for arbitration in Puerto Rico, where the agency is based, whereas the agreement stipulates New York, where the union is based.
The union is asking the court to make Rimas cover its attorney fees from handling the allegedly improper filing.
Rimas and the MLBPA could not immediately be reached for comment Friday night.
The case serves as a test of the MLBPA’s ability to govern agents.
“Rimas Sports respectfully disagrees with the District Court’s ruling, as we believe that the Major League Baseball Players Association’s actions violate the National Labor Relations Act and require additional legal scrutiny,” Rimas said last week. “There are serious concerns surrounding the arbitrary nature of MLBPA’s decision to unilaterally expand its regulatory powers and the significant inconsistencies in the application of its disciplinary practices.
“The District Court’s decision relied on an amendment which was introduced by the MLBPA only after the union commenced their investigation against Rimas Sports and was retroactively applied solely to the Rimas matter.”
Required reading
• Judge agrees with MLBPA, says Bad Bunny agency dispute belongs in arbitration
• Bad Bunny’s agency offered $200,000 loan, concert tickets to players, MLBPA says
(Photo of Benito Martinez: Jeffrey McWhorter / Associated Press)
