Milk & Honey Music + Sports Announces Nashville-Based Baseball Venture Led By Kyle Thousand

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Kyle Thousand. Photo: Courtesy of Milk & Honey Sports

Milk & Honey Sports is bringing the world of Major League Baseball to Nashville with the announcement of Milk & Honey Baseball, launched alongside existing partners. This new Nashville-based venture will be run by industry veterann Kyle Thousand and will sit under the Milk & Honey sports banner.

“I’m thrilled to be joining the Milk & Honey family. In making the decision, I have been very calculated and intentional with finding the right partner to take this next step in my career and build upon the growth and advancements made while previously at Roc Nation Sports,” says Thousands. “After speaking with Lucas [Keller], Dave [Frank] and the rest of the Milk & Honey team, it became apparent that we shared the same vision in their expansion into baseball, to create a truly unique, boutique baseball division that is focused on providing clients with elite servicing, unparalleled contract negotiation and helping clients maximize their opportunity in baseball both on and off the field.

“I’m impressed with what Milk & Honey has done in the music, venture, web3 and football spaces, and I look forward to leading this new baseball division as well as exploring potential opportunities to move into other sports.”

Milk & Honey Music + Sports + Ventures was founded by Keller and has offices in Los Angeles, New York and Nashville. It’s sports division has been rapidly growing its presence since launching in 2021. Milk & Honey Sports is run by veteran agents and partners Jacob Presser, Rawleigh Williams, Dave Frank and Alex Harrow.

“We’ve been discussing expansion into other sports ever since we opened Milk & Honey’s football division. Today, we show our fast commitment to opening baseball as another exciting chapter in Milk & Honey Sports, and the company’s steadfast goal of becoming a broader entertainment company beyond music,” says Keller. “Every time we enter another vertical, we get to start over, which is exciting for us, we have something to prove. We’re fortunate that we get to welcome folks who are at the top of their game, and Thousand is the perfect person to lead us into this next chapter.”

Thousand joins Milk & Honey after most recently working at Roc Nation Sports as their first ever Managing Director of Baseball, overseeing the division and representing some of the game’s best players, including CC Sabathia, Robinson Cano, Yoenis Cespedes, Frankie Montas, Eddie Rosario, Erick Aybar, Miguel Sano and Shelby Miller, amongst others.

While at Roc Nation, Thousand made headlines during the Yoenis Cespedes free agency negotiations with the NY Mets, presenting the Mets with advanced metrics to measure how much Cespedes was worth to the team in terms of generating ticket, media, merchandise and sponsorship revenue. Cespedes’ deal with the NY Mets was negotiated as a $75 million contract that included an opt-out after the first season. Through Thousand’s work, Cespedes was guaranteed $137.5 million over five years with the Mets.

Prior to that, Thousand worked at Excel Sports Management from 2011 to 2015, working as an MLBPA Certified Agent and Director in the Baseball Division. Thousand initially started his professional sports career by being drafted to the Toronto Blue Jays and playing in the Blue Jays system after attending the University of Iowa, where he was a two time All-Big Ten selection.

Thousand also holds a law degree from the Creighton University School of Law and began his legal career as an associate in the Chicago law firm Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP. Through the firm’s Corporate, Sports and Entertainment department, he worked as part of a team that was outside counsel for the Chicago White Sox and the Chicago Bulls.

“Kyle is a great addition to our sports division at Milk & Honey and baseball is a world we are excited to jump into. We believe Kyle’s previous successes in both the legal field and the sports world (working at two of the most successful agencies in the business) will prove to be a huge asset to our clients and the entire Milk & Honey team. We couldn’t be more excited to welcome Kyle and his expertise to the Milk & Honey Sports division, one of the most respected and aggressive companies in the space,” Presser & Williams share in a statement.

Milk & Honey Baseball was launched in partnership with Big Plan Holdings, a Nashville-based family-office with investments in cannabis, real estate, music, entertainment, and hospitality, among a myriad of strategic investments across the United States.

Steven Boero
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