For anyone interested
Major League Baseball (MLB): "Selig to appoint rep to oversee Dodgers"
mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20110420&content_id=18039056&vkey=news_mlb&c_id=mlbOther MLB stories:
* Focus remains on field for Dodgers players
* MLB-run team nothing new for LA's Carroll
* Dodgers hire Soboroff as vice chairman
* McCourt representatives meet with Selig's office
* McCourt confident in security despite melee
* MLB denies McCourt's attempted loan
* McCourt: Time not right to discuss ownership
* LA fundraiser for injured Giants fan a success
Washington Post - Major League Baseball takes over operations of Los Angeles DodgersNEW YORK â Major League Baseball is taking the extraordinary step of assuming control of the Los Angeles Dodgers, a team increasingly paralyzed by its ownersâ bitter divorce.
Once among baseballâs glamour franchises, the Dodgers have been consumed by infighting since Jamie McCourt filed for divorce after 30 years of marriage in October 2009, one week after her husband fired her as the teamâs chief executive. Frank McCourt accused Jamie of having an affair with her bodyguard-driver and performing poorly at work.
Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig told Frank McCourt on Wednesday he will appoint a MLB representative to oversee all aspects of the business and the day-to-day operations of the club. At the same time, Frank McCourt was preparing to sue MLB, a baseball executive familiar with the situation told The Associated Press, speaking on condition of anonymity because McCourt had not made any statements.
âI have taken this action because of my deep concerns regarding the finances and operations of the Dodgers and to protect the best interests of the club,â Selig said in a statement.
Seven hours after Selig made his announcement, Frank McCourt issued a statement expressing puzzlement.
âMajor League Baseball sets strict financial guidelines, which all 30 teams must follow,â McCourt said. âThe Dodgers are in compliance with these guidelines. On this basis, it is hard to understand the commissionerâs action today.â
A person familiar with Seligâs thinking said the commissioner may choose to force a sale. The person spoke to the AP on the condition of anonymity because Seligâs statement did not mention that.
âI consider it a sad day for baseball and a sad day for the Dodgers,â general manager Ned Colletti said.
Dodgers manager Don Mattingly had his 50th birthday Wednesday. He said he saw the news on television and then Colletti talked to the team.
âItâs hard to imagine it would happen somewhere like the Dodgers, but thereâs crazy stuff going on everywhere. Youâre seeing monster major banks going down, so obviously it can happen,â Mattingly said before the game against Atlanta at Dodger Stadium.
Baseball officials could not recall another instance in modern times when the commissioner seized control of a team from its owner. Before Tom Hicks sold the Texas Rangers last year, Selig appointed McHale to monitor the Rangers but technically left Hicks in charge of the franchise while McHale worked behind the scenes.
Even when suspending George Steinbrenner from the Yankees in 1990 and forcing Marge Schott to sell her controlling interest in the Cincinnati Reds in 1999, the commissionerâs office allowed the owners to choose their successors as the controlling executive.
âThis is one of the great franchises. Itâs hard to imagine a mess like this ever having happened,â former Commissioner Fay Vincent said. âItâs a very sad situation. I feel very bad for baseball and for Bud.â
Selig said he will appoint his representative within a few days. Former Atlanta Braves and Washington Nationals chief executive Stan Kasten is a possible candidate, the person familiar with Seligâs thinking said. Reached by telephone, Kasten declined comment.
MLB Executive Vice President John McHale Jr. is another possibility as is Corey Busch, the baseball team executive said. Busch, a former San Francisco Giants executive vice president under Bob Lurie, helped negotiate the McCourtsâ acquisition of the Dodgers.
In December, Superior Court Judge Scott Gordon in Los Angeles invalidated a March 2004 postnuptial agreement giving Frank McCourt sole ownership of the team, allowing Jamie to seek one half of the franchise.
Seligâs move came after The Los Angeles Times reported this week that Frank McCourt had arranged a $30 million loan from Fox, the teamâs television partner. Selig has not approved a $200 million loan from Fox to the club, which was first proposed by the Dodgers last summer, and the Times said the money was needed to make payroll.
The team has been criticized for its poor security since Giants fan Bryan Stow was beaten as he left Dodger Stadium following the season opener. Stow remains in a medically induced coma.
Entering Wednesday, the Dodgers had averaged 39,205 fans per game, down 11 percent from their average last season.
âAs the 50 percent owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers, I welcome and support the commissionerâs actions to provide the necessary transparency, guidance and direction for the franchise and for Dodgers fans everywhere,â Jamie McCourt said in a statement.
The Dodgers have not won the World Series since 1988, the longest barren stretch for the franchise since winning its first title as the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1955.
âI commend baseball Commissioner Bud Seligâs (wresting) control of the Dodgers and bringing integrity back to the game,â Los Angeles County Supervisor Michael Antonovich said. âIt is my hope that the commissioner appoints a representative from the OâMalley family to oversee the teamâs business affairs during the investigation â a return of the OâMalley family to the Dodgers would be a home run for fans and the Dodgers.â
The OâMalley family owned the Dodgers from 1950-98. The McCourts purchased the Dodgers from Fox, a subsidiary of Rupert Murdochâs News Corp., for $430 million in 2004. Payroll dropped in both 2010 and 2011; even though it stands at nearly $104 million, the Dodgers were 12th among the 30 teams on opening day.
âMy office will continue its thorough investigation into the operations and finances of the Dodgers and related entities during the period of Mr. McCourtâs ownership,â Selig said. âThe Dodgers have been one of the most prestigious franchises in all of sports, and we owe it to their legion of loyal fans to ensure that this club is being operated properly now and will be guided appropriately in the future.â
Seligâs move might be seen by some as a precedent should the New York Mets have additional financial problems. With owners Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz under pressure from a lawsuit tied to the Bernard Madoff swindle, the Mets borrowed $25 million last year from Major League Baseball. Unlike the McCourts, Wilpon is a longtime friend of Selig.
www.washingtonpost.com/sports/nationals/major-league-baseball-takes-over-operations-of-los-angeles-dodgers/2011/04/20/AFj93nDE_story.html?hpid=z3