Furnish gets caught in summer league quagmire
Nebraska pitcher caught between Cape Cod, Northwoods leagues

By Will Kimmey
September 1, 2004

On July 6, Brad Furnish was warming up for his fourth start of the summer in the Cape Cod League, when an unexpected visitor came to the bullpen. It was a local constable, bringing him notice of a lawsuit that had been filed against him.

The lawsuit, filed by the Northwoods League, said that by pitching for Wareham in the Cape League, Furnish had breached a contract he had signed with the NWL's Rochester (Minn.) Honkers. Furnish never pitched another game for Wareham--or anyone else--this summer. An injunction made sure of that.

Furnish's lawyers have filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit, but the case is really less about Furnish than an ongoing turf war between the Northwoods and Cape Cod leagues.

College summer league teams often recruit players for the next summer as soon as the current season concludes, and players sign contracts to reserve their spots. At least a few players end up in different leagues by the time the next season rolls around, whether for personal reasons or to play in a league they regard as better suited to their level of competition.

Northwoods League commissioner Dick Radatz Jr. said the defection of players from his league to the Cape had become a pattern, one he wanted to end. The first notable example came when Lance Niekro, now a Giants prospect, signed a contract with the Northwoods League in the fall of 1998, but ended up spending the following summer in the Cape. The NWL had passed over other third basemen because it was counting on Niekro. League officials contacted the Cape about the defection but made no headway.

Furnish was the opportunity for Radatz and the Northwoods to take a stand. "Finally we just drew a line in the sand," Radatz said. "If they are not acknowledging the validity of our contract, we've got to do something."

Furnish stayed on the Wareham roster for the balance of the summer but did not play. He transferred from Nebraska to Texas Christian and began classes with more legal baggage than the average sophomore. And regardless of how things turn out, the 6-foot-2 lefthander with a low-90s fastball lost a large portion of one of his college offseasons.

"Summer baseball is meant (as an opportunity) to get better," Furnish said. "You can't get better if you don't play."

He ended up a pawn in a summer league turf war. Furnish admits he didn't read his Northwoods contract completely, and if a court rules that he breached the contract, he could also be responsible for the NWL's legal fees, which he was told reach nearly $15,000.

"Yes, I want my money, but I'm not out to financially wound that kid or his family," Radatz said. "That's never been my goal.

"My goal is to get (the Cape Cod League) to recognize the validity of the agreement. He just happened to be the one involved when I drew my line in the sand."

It seems the Northwoods League made progress toward that goal. "If there's ever a question about the Northwoods League about a contract again, Dick Radatz has shown the ability to go after a kid in the court of law," said an agent who regularly helps place college players in summer leagues. "No one ever in the Cape will go after a Northwoods player again."

Cape Cod League commissioner Paul Gallop now even suggests establishing a clearinghouse that would eliminate confusion about which league players commit to. The NCAA uses a similar system for national letters of intent.

"There is no dispute he signed the contract, no dispute at all," Wareham general manager John Wylde said. "We were not aware. The first I ever heard of this was three weeks into the season.

"I regret very much what happened to Brad Furnish. I can look at myself in the mirror straight in the eyes and say we never did anything to induce Brad to play in the Cape over the Northwoods League."

Strange Odyssey

How Furnish did play in the Cape over the Northwoods League was cloudy from the start. The native of Allen, Texas, wanted to play summer ball in the Texas Collegiate League so he could be closer to home. Nebraska's staff encouraged him to play for Rochester, coached by Dave Parra, a friend of Cornhuskers assistant Andy Sawyers. Furnish assented to his coaches' wishes and signed his Northwoods League contract during the 2004 spring semester.

Parra said he had worries about filling out his roster because of players who were involved in NCAA regionals, which began right after Rochester's first game on June 2. When he saw Nebraska did not get a regional bid, Parra called several Huskers players who were on his team to make sure they were coming to Rochester.

Parra reached Furnish on his cell phone as Furnish drove back to Texas. He had just finished his exit interview with the Huskers coaches, which ended in his decision to transfer. He also told Parra he wouldn't be playing for Rochester.

"He said, 'Coach, I'm not going to be able to make it. My mother is ill and I need to stay close to home, and I'm not going to play summer ball,' " Parra said. "I respect that."

Furnish said the events were just a bit different.

"I told him I wanted to come back to Texas," Furnish said. "He asked for reasons why, and that was one of the reasons given. To be honest, I really didn't want to play there."

Whatever the details, Furnish construed the conversation to mean he had been granted his release. The Honkers Website posted the following transaction: "May 31st, 2004: Rochester releases Brad Furnish." And Parra, who was facing a roster crunch, said he had the Rochester franchise release Furnish because no NWL team can carry more than 29 contracts or 25 active players.

"I wouldn't have just released Brad Furnish just to have released him," he said. "He's 90-92 (mph) from the left side.

"Later on, I heard he was in the Cape and said this doesn't make much sense. There was never a call made to me (about going to the Cape) or anything."

Furnish hooked up with the McKinney Marshalls of the Texas Collegiate League and spent four days working out with the team. Wylde had heard Furnish's Northwoods plans fell through and contacted him about playing for Wareham. Furnish told Wylde he was free to come to the Cape.

"I asked him had he signed anything with anyone, and to be honest, I was thinking if he had signed with the Texas League," Wylde said. "What he was assuming was that he had been released by the Northwoods League.

"My assumption was that he had been committed to a spot and then wasn't on the roster. In my 25 years of experience, when a player is released from a contract, that player is released."

Radatz, however, says even though Rochester removed Furnish from its roster, the league never formally released him. "It's not official until the commissioner releases him," Radatz said.

Furnish made his first Cape start on June 18. Radatz sent a letter to Furnish, care of Wareham and the Cape League, on June 22 claiming the player had violated his NWL contract and asking him to stop playing for Wareham. Wylde said he discussed the letter with Furnish but advised him to continue pitching.

"I figured the letter might prompt a response from one of them," Radatz said. "Wouldn't you respond? This whole legal thing could have been avoided with some recognition from him, Wareham or the league."

Radatz then sought an injunction in state court in Florida, where the Northwoods League is incorporated, to stop Furnish from pitching. Furnish said he didn't have time to appear in court or money to hire a lawyer, so a judge granted the injunction July 8 after no one presented opposition. Wylde said it was a severe step to take to resolve a misunderstanding.

"What was the objective, to solve a problem or press an issue?" Wylde said. "If it was to solve a problem, I assume you would have made a phone call. If you wait until he's played and then send papers, what is the objective?

"If I was in that position, I would immediately call the commissioner of the Cape and make sure he was aware of the issue."

No Resolution In Sight

Wylde and Gallop each spoke with Radatz about various alternatives to settle the matter, including sending Furnish back to Rochester to play out the season. Furnish said he offered to stop playing in the Cape if the Northwoods League wouldn't seek payment of the legal fees.

Nothing came of the talks. Furnish said he tried to call Radatz at least twice, but those calls were not returned. Radatz and Wylde eventually stopped returning each other's calls as well.

"It wasn't a conversation that solved anything. It just kept going around and around," Wylde said. "I said, 'Why didn't you call me before sending the letter?' and he said, 'Why didn't you call me after you received it?' "

Some people familiar with the case wonder why, if the Northwoods League has made its point about the validity of its contracts, it continues to pursue legal fees, especially given the league's robust fiscal health and Furnish's "meager financial situation," according to a source close to the family.

Radatz acknowledged the league turned down one settlement that had Furnish paying the league if he signed for a bonus in the $200,000 range. "What if he didn't sign for $200,000? What do I do then about the $15,000?" Radatz said. "I've got the guy. I just have to go through the procedure. We've been treated unfairly. What do I get for my unfair treatment? I'm on the hook for $15,000."

The league was not as concerned about how it was treated by Jesse Boyer, a teammate of Furnish's at Nebraska who also signed with Rochester and also ended up in another league. Parra said Boyer needed to stay close to the Lincoln campus for summer school, so he played for the Beatrice (Neb.) Bruins of the MINK (Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska and Kansas) League.

Radatz said he was unaware Boyer had played in another league until he was interviewed for this story. "Obviously, the damage is done," he said. "I don't know what could be done if he has already played."

Radatz said he was sure Rochester released Boyer but said he hadn't filled out anything in writing from the league. He said the league doesn't have a release form because no team or league had ever asked for one. "I'm guessing I'd just write one up," he said.

Radatz says, in essence, the Furnish case is different because it involves the Cape Cod League.

"We didn't want (Furnish) to play somewhere else, in the Cape Cod League," Radatz said. "My main goal was to stop the league from (taking our players)."