Press - Taurus Sports Associates

The Latest Press:

Dec 3, 2011 - South Florida Sun Sentinel -

"Marlins pursuit of Delgado shows landing big-time free agent is a tough process"

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David Sloane is interviewed on MLB.com

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Carlos Delgado signs with the Toronto Blue Jays 10/2000

Delgado signs with the Florida Marlins 1/2005

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Toronto Star Jan. 26, 2005

Geoff Baker: "Wily agent lands $52 million Delgado deal"

While Delgado now moves to the National League in the hopes of helping the Marlins to a second World Series title in three seasons, it was the cunning Sloane who stole the spotlight in the days and weeks leading up to yesterday's deal...

For that, he can thank Sloane, who remained fiercely protective of his 32- year-old client throughout and concluded negotiations by playing four teams - the Marlins, Mets, Rangers and Orioles - off against one another...

Florida had initially made Delgado a three-year, $36 million offer. But the key to yesterday's deal was Sloane embarking on a gutsy strategy to wait until marquee free agents like Carlos Beltran signed and left Delgado as the lone premium bat still on the market - sowing the seeds for a bidding war.

Toronto Star Jan. 26, 2005

Richard Griffin: Jays the biggest losers in Delgado derby

Sloane played the waiting game perfectly. This guy can deal. The Jays were among many who believed, incorrectly, that Delgado, with a glut of younger sluggers on the open market, would be forced to settle for a contract of perhaps two years, with an option, for about $10 million a season. Wrong!

Sloane had set-in-stone salary parameters for Delgado and stuck to his guns throughout. He believed Carlos Beltran would set the ceiling for Delgado in terms of dollars per year and that the trio of Adrian Beltre, Richie Sexson and Troy Glaus would serve as the floor. That's exactly what happened.

Toronto Sun Jan. 26, 2005

Bob Elliott: Marlins pull off one shell of a deal

And as the bidding continued in The Price is Right fashion, the Marlins, Delgado, and his agent, David Sloane of Coral Springs, Fla., agreed upon a four-year guaranteed deal worth $52 million, the richest contract in franchise history.

Toronto Star Dec. 20, 2001

Delgado is overpaid in new, soft market

In the wake of Bonds' and Boone's surrender and A's free agent Jason Giambi's seven-year contract for Delgado-type money with the Yankees, David Sloane, who had wisely included a clause which allowed Delgado's contract to be reopened last winter, could easily be voted agent of the year.

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However, not every team was happy with the signing.

"They're paying Carlos Delgado more than Chipper Jones? Who is his agent -- he's a good one," said one executive. "Jones won an MVP for Atlanta ... I thought that would be the ceiling for position players until Alex Rodriguez."

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SPORTSWRITERSDIRECT

Give agent David Sloane credit.

Toronto general manager Gord Ash panicked a year ago after being forced to trade Shawn Green, and Sloane was able to parlay that into a sweetheart deal for his client.

He got Ash to sign Delgado to a three-year, $32 million deal a year ago and forced Ash to include an opt-out clause for Delgado, allowing him to force a trade after the first year was completed.

It was a win-win situation for Delgado.

Had he been hurt or struggled on the field the past season, he had the security of the final two years of that deal.

As it was, he enjoyed a season worthy of MVP consideration.

And Delgado was able to combine that with the ego of a new ownership wanting to show fans it is committed to building a contending team into a salary that shook baseball's free-agent market before the first player had even filed for this year's bidding.

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