The Sports Info Business

Here is another 10 Question Q&A in the series with people who are working in the sport management business.  Meet Tim Murphy

Tim Murphy & Family

1. Tell us about your company, your position and your responsibilities

We’re a young baseball agency based in Fullerton, CA; our owner is based in Fullerton and have one other full-time employee based in Atlanta and I live and work out of my home in Temecula, CA.

I’m the Vice President of BKK Sports which is owned by former UC Irvine track star and S.I.D. (Sports Information Director), Craig Russell. Craig is an attorney in Fullerton and handles contracts and some of the negotiations for our clients.

My daily routine is anything but; every day I’m in contact with a great number of our clients, amateur advisees, equipment companies, scouts, front office baseball personnel and prospective clients and advisees.

I get out and travel to games in and around the Southern California area watching our advisees and recruiting prospective advisees at the same time. It’s also a great place to speak with scouts about a variety of topics. I also travel to spring training in both Arizona and Florida and make trips during the season to see clients and recruit prospective clients.

2. Can you talk about your career path, starting from your first job in sports until you arrived to your current VP position today

My first legitimate job in sports was working in the Cal State Fullerton S.I.D. office. It was a small office and I performed a variety of duties related to teams playing for the Titans. My major job was working with the baseball team. Basically, the liaison between the baseball team and the media. I was fortunate enough to work with some amazing coaches, players and staff and travelled across the U.S. to many top-notch college baseball stadiums. Not only that, but to be able to work in the press box for the team during three College World Series championships was definitely the highlight of my time at Cal State Fullerton.

I had a friend working for the Scott Boras Corporation, arguably the best baseball agency in the business. She said that the Boras Corporation was hiring and wanted to know if I’d be interested in interviewing. I was hired and began working for the Boras Corp a day after returning home from the 1994 College World Series. Back in ’94, there really was no internet to speak of. All of our statistical research was done by hand and by compiling data from boxscores from USA Today and local papers. When I started, we had a staff of less than a dozen; when I left in February of 2009, there were near 30 or so employees working for the Boras Corp.

After 14 years working for the Boras Corp, I decided I wanted to work closer to home and decided to work for Craig Russell and his law firm which ended up being a blessing because Craig had always wanted to own / work in an agency and I brought enough experience to make that happen. We’ve built our company from the ground up. We’re gathering steam and a few of our clients are already playing in spring training big league camps and we have one client on a Major League 40-man roster.

3. What is the best advice you have ever received?

“Pick your battles” – C.J. Murphy, my wife and best friend and former All-CIF swimmer at Fullerton HS and Penn State Swim Team scholarship winner.

“Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff ” – Dr. Richard Carlson’s book I read during a rough patch early in my Boras Corp career.

4. What Are the your top sports memories you are most fond of telling others

Other than the Cal State Fullerton baseball games in Omaha at Rosenblatt Stadium, I think all of my favorite sports memories were football games I was lucky enough to attend during my dad’s tenures at the University of North Dakota and Cal State Fullerton. From 1985 to 1992, I was able to work in the equipment room at Cal State Fullerton for the football program and didn’t miss one game during that time. Taking many trips to huge S.E.C. stadiums are certainly some of the fondest memories I’ll ever have.  And, to be able to share those moments with my father made it that much more special.

A couple of other special sports memories for me would have to be working as the official statistician for Super Bowl XXVII in Pasadena between the Bills and Cowboys. Working in the same position for the Rams and Raiders for the previous three years allowed me to get that position.

Also, working in the press box as announcer and statistician for the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim for the team’s first three seasons was a memory I’ll always cherish.

5. Today, being a sports agent or working in a sports agency is a popular job for people.  What does it take to work in one and what would you tell others looking for direction?

A lot of agencies today are accepting interns. It’s a great way to find out if it’s something you’d want to do in the long run. Interns really do the grunt work of most agencies but are so important to make the agencies flourish. If you’re a hard worker and you think working in an agency is for you, it could turn into a full-time job.

Working full-time in an agency is really a 24/7 job. The employees of an agency are ALWAYS on call. Since you’re being paid by the clients, you have to pretty much be available to them whenever they need to contact you. If you’re not, clients could leave you for another agency that might promise better service. I almost always answer a phone call from a client; unless I’m on the phone with another client or spending time with my family. Sometimes you have to turn the phone off for a couple of hours and remember the most important things in life.

6. People see the glamor, but what are some of the challenges working on the agent side of the business?

I’m going through one of those challenges right now. We’re trying to find jobs for two of our clients who were released from their teams at the end of last season. It’s a lot of work making calls, sending e-mails and setting up workouts with Major League teams.

One of the biggest concerns working in this industry is that you’ll lose a client to another agency. If you’re not paranoid, you’re not a good agent. Players have teammates who have other agents and agencies. Baseball is a small world. Players are always measuring each other up by the equipment contracts they’ve earned and what kind of equipment their agents have sent them. It’s not fun to get that phone call from a client letting you know they’ve decided to go in another direction. But, that’s the nature of this business and you try not to take it personally. However, if you’ve built up a strong relationship with the player and they leave your agency, it’s a tough thing to handle.

7. What do you tell people you meet who want a career working in the sports management business?  Practical tips?

<kinda like question 5, i think?>

8.  Name three mentors (at least) and why they’ve had an impact.

My dad, Gene Murphy. Easy. Of course I’m being biased. The man taught me how to be patient and that what comes around goes around; karma. That things happen for a reason and to try not to change your beliefs to please somebody else. He will always be my number one mentor and hero.

My first “boss” (who I’ve always considered a friend rather than a boss), Mel Franks. Taught me how to write. Of course, if he sees this “interview”, he’ll head for that same red pen that made my very first baseball media guide look like it was bleeding when he finished editing it. Mel is the epitome of the patience virtue of which my dad spoke. Don’t know a soul who doesn’t respect what Mel has done in his professional life. His family is also one of tightest I’ve ever known as well. I hope my son and daughter grow up to love each other like Mel’s son and daughter do.

Scott Boras, for obvious reasons. I would not be able to do what I’m doing today without his tutelage and support. I learned everything about the baseball industry from him and his amazing support staff.

9. If you were not working in sports today, what would you be doing?

Weatherman/person; meteorologist.

That’s the short answer.

Most likely a teacher of some sort. I love geography, history and science. I love to teach. I like to try and challenge, yet make learning fun.

10. Executives talk about being passionate in your job.  What are you passionate about and why?

I’m very passionate about my job. I know there are a lot of people who’d love to be doing what I do. I’m very fortunate to have found a person who believes in me and supports me whether I’m successful or fail in certain areas of the business.

I’m MOST passionate about my family, however. I adore my wife and kids and would do anything for them; and, anything with them. One of the reasons I made the switch to working with and for BKK Sports is so I could spend more time with my family. We’re all enjoying our new lives with our young company in a new home in a new city.

for an extra question, i’ll throw in the following that you’ve used in past “10 Questions” posts(?):

…If I had to do it all over again, I would start by…

…begging my folks to let me stay in North Dakota for my high school years to see if I had what it took to be a legitimate hockey player. Other than that; I wouldn’t change a second of my life.

——————

Join Sportsinfo101.com on Facebook