NCAA Division I Rules on Agents & MLB Tryouts

The Major League Baseball Draft is quickly approaching June 8-10, 2015, and this time of year, we typically get many questions about NCAA rules regarding agents/advisors, and tryouts with professional teams.

If you are a current high school athlete or a current college athlete it’s important to understand the NCAA rules so that you don’t jeopardize your college eligibility if you decide to play in college rather than sign with the pros.


Regarding Agents/Advisors

A discussion of agents/advisors can be very tricky as it pertains to the NCAA rules that apply to the interaction between an athlete (or the athlete’s parents or legal guardians) and an agent/advisor. That’s primarily because an individual can be an agent, or an advisor, or both. It all depends upon how they conduct their business and interact with athletes/parents.

The following scenario describes how to properly negotiate so you won’t damage your NCAA eligibility: 

• An athlete can be negotiating directly with a professional team in a conference room (or on the phone)

• They can leave the room (or get off the phone) to go into the hallway to speak with the advisor about the draft position or contract offer from the team.
  

• The athlete can then return to the conference room or phone call to continue the discussion with the team.

The athlete may need to do this many times before they reach an agreement with the MLB team. Conducting business in this manner won’t damage their NCAA eligibility.

The following scenario WILL ruin an athlete’s NCAA eligibility:

If the advisor inserts themselves into the middle of the negotiation by being the point person between the athlete and the MLB team, and is speaking directly with the MLB team on behalf of the athlete, they then become an agent and the athlete’s college eligibility has been ruined.

Regarding MLB Tryouts

An athlete may participate in tryouts with a professional team, as long as the team does not provide the athlete with more than “actual and necessary expenses” to participate in the tryout.

• If the athlete has not yet begun full-time college enrollment, then there is no NCAA restriction on the length of the tryout.

• However, if the tryout occurs after an athlete’s full-time enrollment in a college or university, then the athlete is limited to one tryout per team, and the tryout is limited to 48 hours (unless the athlete pays out of pocket for any additional expenses, including return transportation home or back to campus).

• The athlete can’t miss class to participate in the tryout.

It’s also permissible for athletes to participate in practice sessions with a professional team as long as the guidelines for a tryout are adhered to, and the athlete doesn’t take part in any games or scrimmages against outside competition as a member of the MLB team.

NOTE: I’ve been told by a reliable source that it’s common practice for an MLB team to make game tickets available to athletes when visiting the MLB city to participate in a tryout or meet with a team. While it may be common practice, this benefit would violate NCAA rules and render an NCAA athlete ineligible because they would be receiving more than “actual and necessary expenses” for participating in the tryout.

Informed Athlete has created a handout – “What are the NCAA Division I Rules on Agents & MLB Tryouts?” If you’d like a copy of this handout with more in-depth info on this topic, please click MLB Agent and Tryout Rules and we’ll send it to you via email.

If you have questions about NCAA eligibility rules and requirements, or any other topic regarding participation in college athletics, contact Rick Allen at rick@informedathlete.com or by phone at 913-766-1235.

Rick Allen, Founder 
Informed Athlete®
913-766-1235
www.informedathlete.com
rick@informedathlete.com