Florida law seeks to change rules for Cuban baseball players

[Sports News]

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By Bill Cotterell TALLAHASSEE Fla. (Reuters) - Major League Baseball must allow players in Cuba to sign contracts directly with professional teams in the United States in order to receive tax breaks in Florida under a new law signed by Governor Rick Scott on Friday. Because of the U.S. trade embargo on Cuba, existing MLB rules require Cuban players to enter the amateur player draft, which greatly reduces their chances of landing a big contract. In order to negotiate with teams directly, Cuban players have to establish residency in another country. The provision was tucked into a large tax-incentive package during the 2014 legislative session in April. The bill provides up to $13 million a year in sales-tax rebates for professional sports teams for building, refurbishing or expanding stadiums.

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