You may not be familiar with his name, but Curt Flood was one of the most influential baseball players of all time. His defiance of Major League Baseball’s reserve clause led to the advent of free agency — a pivotal moment, not just in the MLB, but in all professional sports.

What You Need To Know

  • Curt Flood was one of the most influential baseball players of all time

  • Despite his impact, Flood has gone largely unrecognized for his efforts

  • His daughter, Shelly Flood, is fighting to get her father into the Baseball Hall of Fame

  • In 1970, Flood sued Major League Baseball for the right to negotiate his own contract

Despite his impact, Flood has gone largely unrecognized for his efforts. But his daughter, Shelly Flood, is fighting to get her father into the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Flood played for the Cincinnati Reds and the St. Louis Cardinals. Although he played on a World Series championship team, LA Times sportswriter Bill Shaikin said he is most famous for what he accomplished off the field.

“The premise was, 'baseball had an exemption from federal antitrust law.' And so the Major League owners, the folks that own the game and run the game, are basically able to do things that other companies acting in concert would not. Curt Flood’s argument was, ‘you shouldn’t be able to tell me where I have to play. I should have a say in that. Everybody in America gets to pick where they want to work. But I, a baseball player, can’t do it,’” Shaikin explained.

In 1970, Flood sued Major League Baseball for the right to negotiate his own contract. The suit went all the way to the Supreme Court. His daughter talked about the case. 

“Unfortunately, Dad lost that court case after litigating about two or three years back and forth. The Supreme Court said, ‘Mr. Flood, you’re right. One man should not own another man. But we’re not going to do anything about it. We're going to let Congress handle that.’ And he lost. He was devastated. He felt betrayed. He felt betrayed by the legal system. He felt betrayed by the sport that he loved, his teammates,” Shelly Flood said.

Ultimately, MLB players got free agency and other professional sports followed suit. Shelly Flood believes her father should be a part of the exclusive Baseball Hall of Fame for his contributions to the sport on and off the field.

“Interestingly enough, my father has never been nominated to be in the Hall of Fame. He’s never been on the ballot,” Shelly Flood said. 

“If you don’t make the Hall of Fame as a player... that doesn’t mean it’s the end. You get referred to a number of committees that the Hall of Fame has set up as essentially second chance committees,” Shaikin explained. “So hopefully between one of these committees that the Hall of Fame has, there’s a place for Curt Flood in Cooperstown.”

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