FSU names ex-ACC boss in amended complaint
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Andrea Adelson, ESPN Senior Writer
The Florida State board of trustees has filed an amended complaint to its lawsuit against the ACC, alleging the conference engaged in “self-dealing” when former commissioner John Swofford made media rights deals that cost member schools “millions of dollars” while helping his son.
The 59-page amended complaint, filed Monday night in Leon County, Florida, and obtained by ESPN, adds onto the allegations of “chronic fiduciary mismanagement and bad faith” that Florida State made in its first lawsuit, filed on Dec. 22.
Florida State is seeking declaratory judgment to void the league’s grant of rights and withdrawal fee as “unreasonable restraints of trade in the state of Florida and not enforceable in their entirety against Florida State.”
The ACC filed its own lawsuit against Florida State in North Carolina in December, then filed an amended complaint Jan. 17 seeking damages from Florida State for “serial breaches of critical legal promises and obligations.” As a result, Florida State chose to file its own amended complaint with a more aggressive tone — specifically naming Swofford and his son, Chad, and going into much greater detail into how specific media rights deals with Raycom Sports have hurt all member schools.
In a new section titled “The 2010 ESPN Agreement, ‘Raycom Partnership,’ and New Withdrawal Penalties,” Florida State contends that Swofford insisted in conversations with potential bidders for ACC media rights in 2010 that Raycom Sports be included in any new deal the ACC signed.
Raycom had a long partnership with the ACC but was struggling financially, and it needed to keep a package of ACC media rights for survival, according to the complaint. Chad Swofford worked for Raycom at the time and eventually became a vice president and general manager at the company.
As a result, ESPN sublicensed a package of Tier II and Tier III rights content to Raycom Sports for $50 million annually, and the complaint states this package “provided Raycom with more marketing and media rights than it had before, including syndication, ACC Properties and all digital rights.”
Florida State alleges in the lawsuit Swofford engineered this partnership “for the benefit of Raycom Sports,” noting, “The Raycom Sports Partnership has cost each ACC member several million dollars and continues to depress the value of their media rights, and the cost and success of their prestige network through today.”
A new deal with ESPN in 2012 kept Raycom Sports in the fold for Tier II and Tier III rights, and so did a deal in 2016 that has become a major source of contention and came with the grant of rights, which gives the ACC control of all member school media rights through 2036.
Florida State outlines that Tier I rates stayed the same, giving the league the same financial terms it negotiated four years earlier.
It also alleges its partnership with Raycom results in “approximately $82 million of rights fees for ACC Tier II and Tier III games going to third parties each year rather than the ACC and $50 million in rights fees paid by Raycom Sports to ESPN for sublicensing a package of ACC games (which in turn Raycom Sports licensed to Fox Sports Network/Bally for a substantial profit not shared with the members).”
In response to the ACC’s lawsuit against Florida State, the complaint describes the lawsuit as “unprovoked” and alleges the league was required to give notice and convene a “meeting” of its board at to secure a two-thirds majority for “the initiation of any material litigation involving the conference.”
“Nowhere in either of the two complaints the ACC has now filed does the ACC purport to have complied with this mandatory precondition,” the lawsuit states. Florida State also denies breaching its contractual obligations to the league.
In addition, the ACC’s filing also challenged Florida State’s ability to have school officials in conference leadership positions, which includes FSU president Richard McCullough on the ACC’s board of directors and finance committee.
BOSTON — Boston Red Sox first baseman Triston Casas suffered a ruptured tendon in his left knee and is out for the remainder of the season, the team said.
The 25-year-old Casas ruptured his patellar tendon running to first on a slow roller up the line and fell awkwardly in Boston’s victory over the Minnesota Twins on Friday night. After laying on his back in pain — not moving the knee — he was carted off on a stretcher before being taken to a Boston hospital.
The team announced Sunday that he had surgery for a left patellar tendon repair at Massachusetts General Hospital. The surgery was performed by Dr. Eric Berkson.
“I talked to him last night,” chief baseball officer Craig Breslow said in a news conference on Saturday discussing the injury outside Boston’s clubhouse. “We exchanged text messages [Saturday]. We all care deeply about just his overall wellbeing.”
Manager Alex Cora said Casas worked hard during the offseason to play every day after missing a large amount of last year with torn cartilage in his rib cage.
“He did an outstanding job in the offseason to put himself in that situation. It didn’t start the way he wanted it to,” Cora said of Casas’ struggles. “He was going to play and play a lot. Now we’ve got to focus on the rehab after the surgery and hopefully get him back stronger than ever and ready to go next year.”
Casas batted just .182 with three homers and 11 RBIs, but Breslow said his loss will be felt, especially with the team’s lack of depth at the position.
“He certainly struggled through the first month of the season but that didn’t change what we believe his production was capable of being,” Breslow said. “It’s a big loss. In addition to what we think we were going to get on the offensive side, he was kind of like a stabilizing presence on the defensive side of the field — also a big personality and a big part of the clubhouse.”
During spring training, Casas talked about how his focus at the plate this season was being more relaxed.
“You really want it until you don’t,” he said, explaining his thoughts while standing at his locker. “Then you can’t want it that much.”
Now, he’ll have to focus on his recovery plan for next season.
Casas, a left-handed batter, was placed on the 10-day injured list Saturday with infielder/outfielder Abraham Toro selected from Triple-A Worcester.
Cora said Toro — a switch-hitter — will split time at first along with Romy Gonzalez. who bats right-handed.
Breslow said the team might be exploring a long-term replacement.
“This is unfortunately an opportunity to explore what’s available,” he said. “We’ll look both internally and outside as well.”
Cora said there are no plans to move Rafael Devers, who was replaced at third by offseason free-agent acquisition Alex Bregman and moved to DH.
“We asked him to do something in spring training that in the beginning he didn’t agree with it and now he’s very comfortable doing what he’s doing,” Cora said. “Like I told you guys in spring training, he’s my DH.”
TORONTO — Cleveland Guardians star Jose Ramirez was back in the lineup for Sunday’s game against the Toronto Blue Jays, two days after the third baseman left in the third inning because of a mild right ankle sprain.
The six-time All-Star was injured when he stumbled and fell while crossing first base on an infield single. Ramirez went down after being struck in the back by a throw from Blue Jays right-hander Chris Bassitt.
Ramirez was batting third Sunday against right-hander Bowden Francis.
Ramírez sat out Saturday when Cleveland beat Toronto 5-3. He went 2 for 2 before departing Friday, boosting his average to .274. He has five home runs and 15 RBIs in 31 games.
In last Thursday’s 4-3 victory over Minnesota, Ramirez became the first primary third baseman to reach 250 homers and 250 stolen bases.
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