Arbitrator says Padres star Fernando Tatis Jr. owes $3.74 million to Big League Advance

Fernando Tatis Jr. has been ordered to pay Big League Advance $3.74 million by an independent arbitrator. The decision was made last month amid Tatis’ attempt to void the future-earnings deal that he signed as an 18-year-old in the Dominican Republic, years before inking a 14-year, $340 million deal with the Padres.

Big League Advance filed a petition with the Superior Court of the District of Columbia on Sept. 24 to confirm the arbitration award against Tatis. Per court documents, Tatis has not made payments to BLA since the end of 2023.

Tatis and BLA signed a deal in October 2017 that gave the player $2 million in exchange for 10% of all future earnings. Per terms of the deal, BLA’s cut of the $340 million contract that Tatis signed in February 2021 would be $34 million.

Tatis did not sign his BLA contract in California, but he is seeking legal recourse here for both himself and future players based on the state’s consumer protection laws, which his legal team asserts are applicable because Tatis is employed by the Padres. Tatis’ attorney said in June that BLA is an unlicensed lender issuing illegal loans and that BLA used manipulative and unlawful tactics to lure him into an investment deal.

The arbitrator, according to court documents filed with the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, denied the stay of the arbitral proceeding sought with the lawsuit in California. The arbitrator does not have jurisdiction in Tatis’ ongoing California lawsuit, but wrote it was “unlikely that (BLA) could ever be deemed a ‘consumer.’” BLA loaned “nothing” and Tatis “owed nothing” in return for a $2 million advance that was “unconditionally paid, not loaned” if he did not make the majors, the arbitrator wrote.

Furthermore, Tatis’ $2 million advance could hardly be deemed personal or for household purposes as required by a “consumer” as defined by California code, the arbitrator wrote.

The deal that Tatis signed in October 2017 included an agreement to voluntarily submit to arbitration proceedings that he is litigating in California, according to the arbitrator.

The petition is asking the court to require Tatis to pay a sum of $3.23 million, plus interest ($240,515), attorney’s fees ($250,000) and costs ($14,349).