One Man’s Fight For Free Agency: The Curt

Flood StoryBy: Samantha R.

Getting Started

• Stayed out of gangs as a teen by focusing on baseball and art.

• Succeeded at both through high school, and signed his first contract as a senior for the Cincinnati Reds.

Curt Flood in his first of 12 seasons with the St. Louis Cardinals.

Accomplishments

• Three time all star• Seven time winner of the Gold

Glove• Hit 29 home runs in his first of

15 seasons• Helped lead Cardinals to the

World Series three times in twelve seasons.

On August 19, 1968 Curt Flood stole the cover of Sports Illustrated with this game winning jump.

Bumps In The Road

• “Reserve Clause”• Traded to the Philadelphia

Phillies.• Law suit against MLB

Following The Law Suit

• Flood V. Kuhn was ruled in favor of MLB in a 5-3 vote.

• Flood played one more season after loosing the law suit.

• Few years later the Supreme Court reversed it’s decision for two white players.

What’s happened Since?

• Flood died January 20, 1997 two days after his 59th birthday.

• Most players who have benefited from Flood’s fight don’t even know who he is.

• Players now own their careers, and aren’t owned by the game.

“I’m sorry that so

many of the young

players who made

millions, who

benefited from his

fight, are not here.

They should be

here.”-Tito Fuentes

“The irony is, even

half of them don’t

know who he was.”

-Hank Greenwald

“As a result of my father’s destructive habits, throat cancer was the chief contributor to his early death. But I like to think that my old man died of a broken heart.”

-Curt Flood Jr.