Who is Shohei Ohtani's agent, Nez Balelo? All you need to know about two-way phenom's representative

With Shohei Ohtani's free agency approaching, the limelight will be on everyone surrounding the momentous occasion. From his personal manager to his interpreter, everyone will be talked about. One of the key figures who will be involved is his agent, Nez Balelo.

Balelo is one of the most well know agents in the MLB. After completing his senior year from Pepperdine University, he was selected by the Seattle Mariners in the MLB Draft as a fourth-round pick. But adversity struck as a career-ending injury stopped his foray into the majors.

However, he decided to turn things around by starting a developmental baseball school. Simultaneously, he ventured into scouting, joining the Atlanta Braves system. He stayed with them for 10 years while his school developed into a multi-million dollar business with multi-faculty programmes.

After a decade with the Braves as a scout, Balelo decided to turn to entrepreneurship, selling his business and starting his own sports agency. He achieved incredible success in the years that followed, with multiple first-round picks and creating a good working relationship with franchises.

Nez Balelo was then recruited by the IMG group before signing onto CAA Sports to become one of their top sports agents. Over the years while at CAA, he has been able to garner contracts worth more than $4 billion. He regularly features on Forbes list of most powerful agents in the world.

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A look at some of Nez Balelo's clients

Balelo has some of the top clients from the world of baseball. Apart from the Japanese sensation, Shohei Ohtani, he's also Sandy Alcantara's and his of the Miami Marlins teammate Jean Segura's agent.

With Ohtani looking to attract contracts more than $500 million, Balelo will play a crucial role in securing the best place where his top client can play in the future.