Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Dr. James Andrews

A long, fascinating profile of the man whose name is the last you hear before realizing your team's season is in the crapper:

Andrews' Sports Medicine and Orthopaedic Center in Birmingham functions as a powerful lever, a multimillion-dollar enterprise that affects multibillion-dollar leagues. An injured player is the equivalent of a dormant assembly line: If he isn't filling seats, he isn't generating revenue. Yet he's still getting paid. Last year, MLB teams spent $337 million -- almost 14% of payroll -- on players too hurt to play. When Andrews repairs those athletes (or helps them avoid injury), teams can optimize their investments, and players can extend their careers, reaping free agency's rewards. Take it from superagent Scott Boras, who estimates that his clients have signed about half a billion dollars in contracts after being treated by Andrews.
You know you're dealing with a special talent when Scott Boras is claiming that his clients have made money due to factors beyond his own skill and cunning as a negotiator.

(link via Deadspin)

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