Nez Balelo began his professional career in 1985 when he signed his first contract with the Seattle Mariners out of Pepperdine University.

This year marks the 40th year Nez has been involved in MLB in some type of capacity.
Nez has had a diverse career spanning many roles, including several years as a player, both domestically and internationally, a special assignment scout, baseball development business owner and for the past 22 years as a sports agent.

As the first employee of CAA sports in the LA office, Nez has played a key role in the agency’s growth and success since its inception in 2006. He has heavily contributed to CAA Sports becoming the World’s #1 sports agency for eight consecutive years, now managing close to $20 billion+ in total contracts.

For the past 19 years, Nez has led multiple CAA Sports divisions particularly the baseball department, overseeing negotiations for contracts worth over $7 billion. Throughout his career, he has represented multiple MMA champions, numerous MLB superstars, including multiple MVP’s, All-Stars, Cy Young winners, Hank Aaron Award recipients, Silver Slugger, and Gold Glove winners.

Notably, Nez orchestrated the record-breaking 10-year, $700 million contract for Shohei Ohtani and continues to lead all of Ohtani’s off-the-filed endeavors. This year, Ohtani is poised to break another record by surpassing $100 million mark for a single year in off-the-field global marketing deals.

Nez’s success, expertise and leadership have solidified his place in history as one of the most influential figures in the sports industry.