Sports Agency Led By Bad Bunny Faces MLBPA Punishment For Allegedly Bribing Players
Bad Bunny might be doing bad business.
The world-famous Puerto Rican rapper and singer launched Rimas Entertainment — a sports management agency — in April 2023. And just a year later, his main baseball agent, William Arroyo, has already had his Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA) certification revoked. That's after a union investigation into complaints that Rimas offered improper benefits to players. In other words, bribing them to sign with the agency.
"At Rimas Sports, we uphold the highest standards of professionalism and integrity of our industry," the company said in a statement. "Out of respect for an ongoing process within the context of the MLBPA Agent Regulations, we will refrain from making any comments at this time. We remain committed to continue serving our clients with excellence."
(Photo by Daniel Shirey/MLB Photos via Getty Images)
Within one week of Rimas' launch, the MLBPA received evidence the company had offered players cash, cars and other gifts to switch agencies, sources told ESPN and The Athletic.
Section 5 of the MLBPA's agent regulations explicitly states that no agent "shall provide, cause to provide or promise to provide any money or any other thing of value to any player, or any person related to or associated with such player" in order to persuade the athlete to join or remain with an agency.
READ: Bad Bunny Steals New York Mets' No. 1 Prospect Francisco Alvarez From Top Agent In Baseball
(Photo by Kevin Mazur/WireImage)
Bad Bunny — a GRAMMY-winning artist — is an avid baseball fan. He started the agency in partnership with executives Noah Assad and Jonathan Miranda. Rimas also employed Hall of Fame catcher Iván "Pudge" Rodríguez as a sports ambassador.
The agency's client list includes New York Mets’ Francisco Alvarez and Ronny Mauricio, Cincinnati Reds’ Santiago Espinal, Colorado Rockies’ Yonathan Daza, San Francisco Giants’ Wilmer Flores, Oakland Athletics’ Jordan Diaz and Baltimore Orioles’ Livan Soto. Rimas also represents Diego Cartaya, a top prospect for the Los Angeles Dodgers.