The man responsible for Alex Rodriguez earning $264,416,252 during his career is being featured on HBO.
Almost fourteen and a half years after his death in January of 1997, Curt Flood, the man responsible for free agency in professional sports will have his story told.
Despite a playing career that included a .293 average and 1,861 hits, Flood's legacy is helping ballplayers earn millions. He believed that Major League Baseball's archaic reserve clause was unfair and did something to change it.
The reserve clause forced players to stay with the team whom they originally signed, even after those contracts had run out.
Flood refused to play for the Phillies after they acquired him from the Cardinals following the 1969 season. Curt said he wouldn't report to Philadelphia because the fans were racist, Connie Mack Stadium was dilapidated and the Phillies, at 63-99 in 1969, stunk.
With the players union paying his legal bills, Flood challenged the reserve clause, ultimately appealing his case to the U.S. Supreme Court. Although he lost, Flood helped baseball players win the right to become free agents, ending the reserve clause.
Flood played 15 seasons in the big leagues for the Cardinals and Senators, making a little more than $472,500.
The Curious Case of Curt Flood will air Wednesday night on HBO.
