Former Vermilion baseball star Andy Oliver just wants to clear his name and get back on the mound, according to the lawyer who filed a lawsuit for him last month.

But the suit also opens a window on a power struggle between groups interested in representing a talented and potentially very rich young man and the fallout that led to Oliver’s suspension from the Oklahoma State University baseball team just as it was beginning tournament play with the hope of winning the College World Series.

Oliver was a nationally recruited left-handed pitcher during his senior year with the Sailors, going 6-0 with a 0.40 ERA and 108 strikeouts in 522/3 innings. He was selected in the 17th round of the 2006 Major League Baseball draft by the Minnesota Twins, but he rejected the offer and decided to attend Oklahoma State instead.

Oliver just finished his sophomore season with the Cowboys — going 7-2 with a 2.20 ERA, while striking out 96 and walking 36 in
98 1/3 innings.

From February 2006 until March 2008, lawyers Robert and Tim Baratta served as Oliver’s advisers, a role the NCAA defines as a one-on-one relationship in which a lawyer can’t market an athlete’s baseball skills to any professional team. In March, Oliver terminated his relationship with the Barattas and hired Scott Boras Corp. in an advisory role.

Andy Oliver • Currently pitching for the U.S. National team. • Went 7-2 with a 2.20 ERA in 15 appearances and was a first-team All-Big 12 Conference selection for Oklahoma State University in 2008. He led the Cowboys with 96 strikeouts in 98.1 innings of work, and opponents hit just .211 against him. • Drafted in the 17th round of the major league draft by the Minnesota Twins. • Won Lorain County Mr. Baseball award in 2006 at Vermilion High School after going 6-0 with a 0.40 ERA and 108 strikeouts in 52 2/3 innings

Icon Sports, in which the Barattas were partners, had well-known clients, including Ken Griffey Jr. and highly touted minor leaguer Cameron Maybin. But Boras is the most high-profile agent in baseball, having represented stars such as Alex Rodriguez, Barry Bonds and Carlos Beltran.

The switch would seem to leave Scott Boras Corp. in a position to benefit if and when Oliver signs with a major league team after his junior or senior season. Depending on when a player is drafted, his signing bonus can be in the millions of dollars.

The lawsuit Oliver filed June 25 in Erie County’s Court of Common Pleas alleges misconduct by the Barattas, their former firm Icon Law Group and the NCAA in regard to Oliver’s ineligibility, and it asks for reinstatement to his college team, as well as compensatory and punitive damages.

The Chronicle-Telegram reviewed the lawsuit and spoke to Oliver’s lawyer about it. The newspaper also tried to reach Andrew Entwistle, the lawyer for the Barattas and their law firm, Baratta & Baratta Partners, but the call was not returned.

SportsBusiness Journal reported July 2 that Entwistle had described the suit “as a wholly frivolous piece of litigation. The Baratta brothers and Baratta Partners are directly responsible only for Andy Oliver being able to have the opportunity to play professional ball and realize his full potential as an athlete. He does owe them for the time they put in over the years.”

Just days before the postseason, as Oliver was completing his sophomore season at Oklahoma State, the Cowboys declared him ineligible. The decision stemmed from a letter dated May 19 that Robert M. Baratta sent to the NCAA and copied to Oklahoma State, alleging violations committed by Oliver, the suit says.

The letter said that Oliver owed the Barattas money for their advisory work and that Oliver had told the Barattas that Scott Boras Corp. had offered him baseball equipment and pitching instruction to induce the switch in advisers, the suit says.

The claims are fraudulent and illegal, according to Richard G. Johnson, Oliver’s lawyer.

As proof of that contention, the suit cites a letter describing how the Barattas would be paid, dated Feb. 8, 2006, and written on Baratta & Baratta letterhead.

It’s unlike all the other correspondence Oliver received from the advisers during that time in their relationship, Johnson said.

“If you look at the retention letter of Feb. 14 (2006), it’s on Icon stationary,” he said of the law group the Barattas worked for when they began their relationship with Oliver. “All the subsequent correspondence is on Icon letterhead.

“I’ve already asked for their hard drives, and it’s going to show that that document was created in May of ’08 and not February of ’06.”

The lawsuit says the Barattas sent the letter as a form of retaliation against Oliver, for leaving the legal group and for not paying the “fictitious” money owed.

Furthermore, the lawsuit says, because Oklahoma State also received a copy of the letter, the Cowboys were forced under an NCAA bylaw to immediately withhold Oliver from competition, forcing him to miss the regional tournament and, potentially, the College World Series. The Cowboys lost in the regional tournament to the Wichita State Shockers.

The suit also accuses the NCAA of denying procedural due process to Oliver before suspending him, and acting even before it completed an investigation of his amateur status.

The NCAA, which is named as a defendant in the suit, told The Chronicle that it had no hand in Oliver’s suspension.

“The complaint incorrectly states the NCAA was responsible for Oklahoma State University sitting out the plaintiff during recent competition,” NCAA spokeswoman Stacey Osburn said by e-mail. “That decision was Oklahoma State’s alone. There has been no determination by the NCAA in this matter.”

Johnson provided The Chronicle a letter dated June 27 from J. Scott Williams, Oklahoma State’s associate athletic director for compliance, to John Shukie, NCAA’s assistant director of agent, gambling and amateurism activities.

In the letter, Williams said that the school found only two violations of an NCAA bylaw: that Tim Baratta had a telephone conversation with the Minnesota Twins in 2006 after Oliver was drafted before his freshman year at Oklahoma State, and that Baratta was present during the in-home visit made by Twins area scout Billy Corrigan during a contract negotiation.

According to the bylaw, when a lawyer is present during discussions of a contract offer with a professional organization or has direct contact (including by telephone) with the organization on behalf of the individual, the adviser is then considered to be representing the athlete as an agent.

“The conduct that violates the express terms of those bylaws is that of the Barattas, not Andy,” Johnson said. “The idea that an 18-year-old kid, which is what he was at the time, is in charge of what his lawyers do is preposterous.”

Johnson also questioned a memo dated Oct. 2, 2007, sent out by the NCAA telling its athletes that if they used an adviser, they “will be required to pay that adviser at his or her normal rate for such services.”

The memo is the basis for the Barattas asking for $113,750 (325 hours at $350 per hour) from Oliver, but Johnson said there is no bylaw that supports the memo’s statement.

Osburn, the NCAA spokeswoman, said that if a lawyer advises an athlete but doesn’t charge for the service, “then it would be a violation of NCAA rules regarding impermissible benefits.”

Johnson said, “This is what the Barattas are hanging their hat on. She can say that, but they have not established that there is any value to the advice they gave. Just because someone is labeled as an adviser doesn’t mean they’ve given you any real advice.”

The suit also charges that the Barattas’ work in Ohio and their review of Oliver’s apartment lease in Oklahoma were both ethical violations, as the Barattas were not licensed to practice law in either state.

While Johnson, who is a legal malpractice attorney, said that Oliver has a strong case against all the defendants, it didn’t stop him from becoming frustrated while discussing the specifics of the case.

“The Barattas say it’s not their fault, the NCAA says it’s not their fault, OSU says, ‘The NCAA made us investigate’ — everybody involved in this that’s trying to ruin a 20-year-old kid’s life won’t take any responsibility,” Johnson said. “It infuriates me. This kid’s the nicest guy you’ll ever meet, and this is just a horrible thing.”

Contact Shaun Bennett at 329-7137 or sbennett@chroniclet.com.

---

Print this story
Report an innappropriate comment

---

In order to comment, you must agree to our user agreement and discussion guidelines.
You must be registered and logged in to post a comment. If you aren't already registered, click here.
If you are registered, click here to log in.
Need help? Email Us.