UCF
graduate
Tom
O'Connell
never
realized
his
dream
of
becoming
a
professional
baseball
player.
Boyhood
fantasies
of
hitting
the
game-winning
homerun
have
long
since
fallen
by
the
wayside
for
him.
But
that
hasn't
stopped
him
from
pursuing
his
passion.
Instead
of
being
the
star
on
the
baseball
diamond,
O'Connell
is
now
a
player
behind
the
scenes.
He's
now
a
part
of
Legends
Management
Group,
and
he
is
responsible
for
representing
more
than
40
professional
baseball
players.
Like
so
many
personal
success
stories,
O'Connell's
road
to
achievement
was
long
and
winding.
It
took
time,
and
it
took
determination.
Years
ago,
O'Connell
was
very
active
in
the
Orlando
entertainment
scene,
with
his
management
of
various
downtown
locations
such
as
Roxy,
Have
a
Nice
Day
Café
and
Dennis
Scott's
3-D
restaurant.
It
was
during
this
time
that
O'Connell
encountered
Orlando
attorney
John
Morgan,
who
had
always
wanted
to
venture
out
into
sports
management,
but
was
very
busy
with
his
law
firm
representing
those
who
were
injured
or
neglected.
O'Connell
left
behind
the
nightclub
business
and
under
the
guidance
of
Nick
Buonocotti
Jr.,
set
into
motion
his
sports
representation
career.
This
partnership
led
to
the
Legends
Management
Group,
which
specializes
in
representing
baseball
talent.
Starting
out
as a
sports
agent,
according
to
O'Connell,
requires
"tremendous
amounts
of
travel."
He
is
constantly
in
transit
from
ballpark
to
ballpark,
scouting
talent
and
getting
to
know
key
figures
in
the
baseball
circles.
O'Connell
has
put
"over
200,000
miles
in
two
years"
on
his
cars
in
business-related
travel.
The
business
was
actually
built
out
of
his
car.
Only
recently
has
O'Connell
been
able
to
fly
a
majority
of
the
time,
which
is
essential
when
traveling
to
Central
and
Latin
America
to
scout
talent
is
one
of
the
job
requirements.
With
a
few
years
under
his
belt,
Tom
faces
a
decision
that
most
sports
companies
will
face.
"As
you
grow
as a
company,
you
have
to
choose
whether
you
want
to
represent
a
tremendous
amount
of
clients
or
just
a
handful."
1
1-800
