Two prominent longtime MLB agents, Jeff Randazzo and Jeff Borris, were fired from the Ballengee Group last week, multiple sources told The Athletic, marking a considerable shakeup for the company.
Randazzo joined Ballengee in 2014 from MVP Sports Group, when the agency — formed by Texas oil magnate James Ballengee — was still in its startup phase. Borris joined Ballengee’s baseball division in 2015 from the Beverly Hills Sports Council, where his most notable client was Barry Bonds.
The shakeup prompted at least 17 of Randazzo’s player clients at Ballengee to opt to go on the Do Not Contact list for other certified agents, most notably Mason Miller (San Diego Padres), Tommy Kahnle (Detroit Tigers), Zach Agnos (Colorado Rockies) and Gavin Sheets (Padres). Other players who requested to go on the DNC list in the wake of Borris and Randazzo’s firings include Graham Pauley (Miami Marlins) Max Koranic, Ryan Bergert, Brenton Doyle, Justin Lawrence, Gordon Graceffo, Tim Mayza, Mike Burrows, Hunter Bigge, Gavin Sheets, JJ Wetherholt, Sawyer Gipson, Nick Mears and Richie Palacios.
The flood of players who made the request, which goes through the MLB Players Association, is unusual. It reflects the desire of those players not to hear from other agents who might want to represent them.
Randazzo, when reached by The Athletic, confirmed his departure but declined to get into what specifically led to his exit.
“Ballengee Group, Jeff Borris and I have represented players very responsibly. We all have taken great pride in that,” Randazzo told The Athletic, while confirming his departure. “This is not about athlete representation. Jeff and I were terminated. We love Ballengee Group. We built Ballengee Group. And we’re working on an amicable resolution for both sides.”
Both Borris and the Ballengee Group declined to comment. Remaining employees at Ballengee were notified of the changes via email but not given any specifics.
(Top photo of 2024 MLB Winter Meetings: AP Photo/LM Otero)