In many of his songs, Bad Bunny defines himself as a pitcher. In others, he uses the concept in reverse. He has accompanied him since the beginning of his career. “You are a pitcher, but I’m set for the new entry”, he sang in at your mercyinside the album YHLQMDLG (2020). “Before you pitched me, now I pitch”, in I perreo alone, of the same year. “I always pitch, enlist again”, in chamberalready in 2017. In urban music slang, the term is used to define oneself as someone who ignores bad comments. Its origin, however, is in baseball, a sport with close ties to the Puerto Rican singer. The pitcher, within the fields, is in charge of throwing the ball and, therefore, preventing the opponent from hitting. Returning to music, he would be in charge of preventing criticism from being promoted and achieving its objective. This year, Bad Bunny has gone from metaphors to the playing fields.
In April, the three-time Grammy winner launched his first sports representation agency: Rimas Sports. The project is located within the Rimas Entertainment ecosystem, a company with which Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, as he is called offstage, has promoted Latin music together with other artists of international importance such as Eladio Carrión, Tommy Torres or Arcángel. Now, the goal is to do the same with Latin American sports. “In the music’s world, Rimas stands out for being a company with an innovative spirit and for not following pre-established molds in the industry. That is what we want to bring to the world of sportsa different agency, with a personal focus on our clients to help them turn the vision that each one has for their career into reality”, explains the CEO of the project, Jonathan Miranda, in conversation with AS.
Along with Miranda and Noah Assad, Bad Bunny’s hands in practically all his businesses, Rimas also has Iván “Pudge” Rodríguez, member of the Hall of Fame with 21 seasons in the Major Leagues, 13 gold gloves, an MVP and the World Series from 2003. The former player, “someone who understands sports needs”, will act as a beacon for a cast of representatives among which are already established players such as he all star Santiago Espinal, Yonathan Daza and Ezequiel Tovar or great prospects like Ronny Mauricio, one of the great bets for the future (or present) of the metsowned by billionaire Steve Cohen since 2020 and a franchise that aspires to everything in the short term. “To win a ring, one must have a good guide. He is not afraid to win a championship. That they bet so hard gives us confidence. And he makes it so that in our heads we are only giving 100% to reach that goal ”celebrates Ronny, 22, on the other end of the phone, wearing a cap and happy about his agreement with Rimas, which he believes will be “one of the best agencies of all time.”
“We suffered to eat”
In 2017, Ronny signed a $2.1 million contract with the New York team. “It was like turning the planet around,” he recalls. With his ink on paper, he left behind years of hardship, as topical as it was real. The Dominican promise started playing baseball at the age of seven thanks to Albert Pujols, a legend who retired last year. “He came to my neighborhood (Batey Alemán, in San Pedro de Macorís, the Mecca of Dominican baseball and one of the largest baseball youth academies in the world) and began giving away gloves and bats. Everything you need to play ball. Then he also built a field, ”he recalls. At that time, I lived from day to day, without having the plate insured and with a guardian angel. “My grandmother? My grandmother was everything to me, ”she sums up in a tender voice. “The best memories of my childhood are with her, with whom I lived. He always went out looking for food, because we didn’t have it and we suffered to eat. I don’t know how she did it. Sometimes I came with her, sometimes not… but she was always there”, he recalls.
“It means a lot that a figure like yours comes to our world. He went through all of this.”
From then to today. Mauricio, who since he landed in American baseball five years ago It has always been considered among the 100 most interesting future projects in the league, this year it shows some impressive numbers in Triple A, the last rung of the Minor Leagues before making the leap to the great showcase of the MLB. In 60 games, he has hit 32%, with 80 hits, 38 runs, 8 home runs, 35 RBIs and 9 stolen bases. He sports 52.4% in slugging, which measures the average number of bases earned per at-bat, and 88.4% in OPSwhich mixes slugging and on-base percentage.
The future of the Mets
The Dominican’s performance places him very close to making the definitive jump to the lineup of some Mets who are suffering in attack, highly dependent on the production of Pete Alonso and Franciso Lindor after the last-minute fiasco in his attempt to sign Carlos Correa, the Twins shortstop Steve Cohen wanted as icing on the cake. Precisely the derailment of that contract has been good for Mauricio, who plays in the same position as the Puerto Rican. In fact, it’s also Lindor’s favorite, and that’s why Ronny has already started testing at second base, where the metropolitans have an already veteran like Jeff McNeil. “I was in the Dominican Republic. I was like ‘wow’, but I kept working. There were more positions where I could play and I put it in my mind.”tells about how he lived the negotiations.
His willingness to adapt, which although it seems logical is not a constant in this sport, makes him an even more valuable asset to the franchise. Also the fact that he hits from both profiles, a species that is not abundant. “I am very close to being up there, but I am trying to focus more on what I still need to be up there. Polish all the details and give 100%. They proposed to me the change of position. I see it well. What I want is to help and contribute to the team in any way, be it as shortstop, second… I want to contribute to the team as much as I can”, he assures.
You also benefit from recent changes to the regulations. Above all, due to his ability to steal bases that have now grown larger, precisely to encourage stealing, one of the most spectacular actions in baseball. “In general, the changes are good. Once we enter the fieldsthe clock is ticking and it is something that suits us. You play faster, we don’t get so tired, the fans don’t get bored, they stay active, the pitches are fast, bases are stolen… I think they’re very good”Mauricio assesses about the news, before returning to music, an area in which he recognizes himself as a fan of Bad Bunny.
I have been to many of his concerts. I love it. Is very good. I listen to Bad Bunny a lot before I play, stack. When I’m at home, when I bathe… It means a lot that a figure like yours comes to our world,” he explains. as a preamble to explain why an initiative like Rimas Sports is important: “There are many Latinos who sign contracts as free agents, the figures are not usually very high and they continue to struggle. They play minor leagues, they keep playing to be able to eat….” Rimas will help them in this process, either as a complement to their sports career or as an alternative if it does not reach the levels of success that can solve a life. “He went through all of this. He tries to get us to go up ”, says Mauricio, willing to hit everything that moves on the field and to ‘pitch’ the bad out