Former New York Yankees prospect Garrison Lassiter is suing the team. He claims they ruined his career by protecting Derek Jeter.
Garrison Lassiter was a 27th round pick by the New York Yankees in the 2008 MLB Draft. He reached full-season baseball by the age of 19 by hitting .260/.330/.336 in Class-A in 2009, but Lassiter would have an up and down career from there.
In 2010, Lassiter struggled mightily and was sent back down to short-season ball. He returned to Class-A in 2011 and he found success there—enough that he was moved up to Class A+ in 2011 at just 22. Lassiter hit a paultry .195/.250/.256 that season. The Yankees cut him after season.
According to Brendan Kuty of NJ.com, After his baseball career fell through, Lassiter went to Law School. He put his degree to use against a number of organizations recently. His first target was the Yankees.
He argued that the Yankees held “Lassiter” back in order to protect Derek Jeter. Court documents uncovered by Kuty show that Lassiter made the argument that Jeter was afraid of competition, so the Yankees held him back.
Lassiter sued the Yankees for about $34 million. He came to that number by combining the two players he argues he’s most comparable to, Corey Seager and Brandon Weeden.
According to Lassiter, he deserved a salary equal to Seager’s contract and the money Weeden made in the NFL. Lassiter turned down college football scholarships to sign with the Yankees and believes the Yankees stopped him pursuing a football career. He also asked for $5 million for the basketball career the Yankees robbed him of so long ago.
The judge quickly dismissed the case. Lassiter had no basis or evidence for his argument. So, Lassiter turned to sue the Cincinnati Reds for $1.6 million, three years of major league minimum salary. According to Derek Ashberry of The Post and Courrier, the case is still in court.
Ashberry claims that Lassiter is also in the midst of a lawsuit involving the Reds, claiming they turned him away after tryouts each of the last three years. Lassiter claims the Reds wrongly turned him away and owe him the money he would have made in the majors.