One of the most polarizing figures not only for the Los Angeles Dodgers in recent years but in all of baseball is right fielder Yasiel Puig.
Puig burst onto the scene in 2013, quickly becoming one of the bright young stars in the league. He was named a National League All-Star in 2014, but his play declined each year after that, partly due to injuries.
The 2016 season was a particularly difficult one for Puig, as he was involved in trade rumors all season and when the Dodgers were unable to trade him, they wound up demoting him to Triple-A Oklahoma City.
Puig responded well and bounced back to the tune of a career season in 2017 while also demonstrating some growth in his maturity. He now heads into 2018 as the organization’s unquestioned everyday right fielder.
Some surprising news came out on Wednesday, though, as according to J.P. Hoornstra of the Southern California News Group, Puig’s agency Wasserman Sports has decided to drop him from their client list:
Agent News. Yasiel Puig is no longer represented by Wasserman Sports.
— J.P. Hoornstra (@jphoornstra) February 7, 2018
While the exact reason for it is unknown, Chris Cotillo of SB Nation is reporting that it is for behavioral reasons:
Wasserman’s decision to terminate its partnership with Yasiel Puig is behavior-related, source tells SB Nation. Unclear what exactly transpired.
— Chris Cotillo (@ChrisCotillo) February 7, 2018
The decision by Wasserman Sports is a bit of a surprising one considering Puig is coming off a career year in which he batted .263/.346/.487 with a career-high 28 home runs and 74 RBIs while also playing Gold Glove-caliber defense in right field.
Additionally, Puig is entering the final year of the seven-year contract he signed with the Dodgers after defecting from Cuba. So he is eligible for salary arbitration a year from now and then will become a free agent entering his age-29 season, meaning a big payday could be coming his way.
Puig has yet to comment on the situation and there has not yet been an announcement of who will be representing him moving forward.
