Discussing the Book of the Month

July 2005 - License to Deal

License to Deal is something of a hybrid: It combines the free-agency mantra of Jerry Maguire and its struggles with Moneyball's strategy of finding unexplored niches to beat better-financed and established competitors. The protagonists, Matt Sosnick and Paul Cobbe, left behind successful careers in high tech in 1997 to pursue the dream of being two of the privileged 300 agents licensed to represent professional baseball players. Faced with cutthroat competitors such as superagent Scott Boras, the duo do anything they can to secure an edge. The result is every bit as entertaining as Maguire, but since Crasnick is the third to come to bat with this kind of story, you may not be as eager to swing at this pitch.

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Fast Take

High and inside ideas from License to Deal:

1. Build a home-team advantage. Fed up with recruiting young talent only to watch it leave for big-time agents, Sosnick targets players who share his upbringing and values. It works. After hearing Sosnick vent his frustrations about losing players, three loyal clients rush out to have the agency's logo tattooed on their arms.
2. Employ pinch hitters. Sosnick and Cobbe have no experience grooming athletes or negotiating big contracts, flaws their competitors exploit. So the partners hire an experienced freelance pitching coach and a salary arbitration consultant.
3. It's a stats game. To get every dollar possible for Marlins pitcher Dontrelle Willis, Sosnick tabulates the average value of additional tickets sold during games Willis starts, as well as additional revenue from jerseys, parking, and concessions.