(02.01.08) Recommends:

Buying Low: Minor Leaguer Takes Stock of Himself.

A while back we linked to a Michael Lewis article on creating a stock exchange on which professional athletes are bought and sold. Today the New York times brings the story of Randy Newsom, a minor leaguer, who set up a website where people could purchase shares of his future major league income. The article says that through Thursday, Newsom had sold about 1,800 shares of himself at $20 apiece, bringing in $36,000. The article goes on to say a player like Newsome typically makes $8,000 for a five-month season. Newsom has temporarily shut down the market, as the SEC says the shares are securities, and their unregistered offering violates federal securities law, and MLB is concerned it violates league policies. It may also violate MLBPA (the player's union) policies. However, Newsome says "this idea is not going away." So the story, once hypothetical, seems to be developing in reality now. It'll be an interesting story to follow.