McCourt's Spending Spree

When Matt Kemp signed his insanely long contract extension, it struck me as odd that Frank McCourt was still front and center.

Isn't he about to sell the team?
Isn't the McCourt era coming to a merciful ending?

But then I thought "HE'S A GENIUS!"
Seriously, he wants to get good will going with Dodger fans so he's going on a spending spree.

Watch him offer Albert Pujols 20 years... and C. J. Wilson $19 million a year... and Jose Reyes part ownership of the team...

What does HE care? He's not going to pay for it! So walks out the door, having brought every big free agent to L.A. and it's up to Orel Hershiser or whomever takes over the team to sort it all out.

What a way to go!

Basically, Frank McCourt is leaving the Dodgers by recreating Brewster's Millions.

Don't buy the Dodgers, Mark Cuban. BUY THE PADRES!

Frank McCourt is out as Dodgers owner and people are longing for days when Fox was running the team into the ground.

There are lots of rumors of who should take over the Dodgers. A group led by Steve Garvey and Orel Hershiser is making their intentions known. I like that. It's kind of like Mario Lemieux taking over the Penguins and making them champs again. Or Nolan Ryan bringing the Rangers to the brink.

Who understands what it means to be a Dodger more than Steve Garvey and Orel Hershiser. (Oddly they BOTH won post season MVPs for the Dodgers AND for other teams, but that is neither here nor there.)

There are other people who think that Mark Cuban should take over the Dodgers.
I understand their reasoning. He's a visionary owner who took a moribund NBA franchise in an indifferent market and turned them into perennial contenders and finally a World Champion.

If I were a Dodger fan, I'd rather have a visionary and passionate owner hell bent on putting a winner on the field rather than Fox or the McCourts.

But as a baseball fan, let me say that I'd rather Cuban not run the Dodgers. I don't think it takes much vision or talent to make the Dodgers winners.

Don't believe me? The McCourts treated the Dodgers like their personal ATM machine and ran one of the great glamorous and successful teams in baseball history into bankruptcy court. And they STILL went to the playoffs in 2004, 2006, 2008 and 2009 and had a winning season in 2011!

Four playoff appearances in six years and leaving a winning product on the field with an MVP and Cy Young front runner? All that with an incompetent crook running the team!

So putting Cuban in the role of "Savior of the Dodgers" seems like overkill.

It would be like a producer saying "We need an actress to deliver 3 lines in this episode of Dexter" and having the casting director say "How about Meryl Streep?"

Yeah she can do it. But Meryl should have a role worthy of her talents.

Think about what Cuban did.
The Mavericks used to be just another team filling up the schedule.

They may have had a decent year or two, but were they ever a FACTOR? Was there ever a buzz about the Mavericks?

They were like the Timberwolves or the Washington Wizards or Golden State Warriors are now. Another team to play while you wait for your club to go to Los Angeles, Miami, Boston or some real contender.

And he turned the culture around... under his leadership and aggressiveness they became an exciting team. A non existent fan base waiting for the Cowboys season to start became basketball fans.

He needs a bigger challenge than the Dodgers.

Which brings me to the San Diego Padres.

The Padres have had some good teams recently. They were back to back division champs in 2005 and 2006. And they were a pair of Trevor Hoffman meltdowns from making the 2007 playoffs (and probably winning the pennant that year.)

And in 2010 they were a game away from the NL West title (and probably would have made it to the NLCS.)

There are talented players on the team. And they have a BEAUTIFUL stadium in the middle of a wonderful section of town.

And they don't draw flies.

They are handicapped.
To the North is Los Angeles and Orange County... the domain of the Dodgers and Angels.
To the East is the desert.
To the South is Mexico.
To the West is the Pacific Ocean.

Not the greatest pool which to draw fans.

Yet San Diego is a larger metropolitan area than St. Louis... than Baltimore... than Denver... than Pittsburgh... than Tampa... than Cleveland... than Cincinnati...

So we're not talking about a team that is in a suburb.

And with some imagination and aggressiveness they can become THE team of San Diego. And maybe they can tap into the Riverside and San Bernadino TV markets (13th biggest market in the country.)

Maybe under Cuban's leadership, PetCo could become filled and be a St. Louis of the west... a baseball haven. An underdog city that loves their team, fills their park, watches the games on TV, buys the merchandise.

Free agents could come to San Diego (a BEAUTIFUL city.) And the team could be a super fun club.

How is that less likely than the Dallas Mavericks becoming an elite basketball team?

It would take a visionary owner to do that... like Cuban.

Who CAN'T make the Dodgers winners?
Even McCourt couldn't keep them from the playoffs or below .500.

Come to Southern California, Mr. Cuban.
Just go a little more south.

Selig's main requirement for a new Dodger owner: SIGN PUJOLS!

I don't believe in random events.
I don't believe in first causes.
I don't believe that actions take place in vacuums.

Even me typing this blog post is the result of a long chain reaction of events.

And a chain reaction of events could be conspiring to bring Albert Pujols to Dodger Stadium.
I have no evidence to back up these theories. But I still think it makes sense.

- Albert Pujols launches 3 home runs in one World Series game, putting him in World Series history with Reggie Jackson and Babe Ruth. And he helps spark one of the World Series saving rallies in Game 6. (The fact that he was basically a non factor in the other World Series games is forgotten by everyone.)

- Albert Pujols is a free agent... a perennial MVP candidate and one of the few marquee stars in the game. Plus he is a class act, free of scandal and has multiple rings in St. Louis. He's probably staying in St. Louis with his father figure, Tony LaRussa.

- LaRussa retires, ending his career with his crowning achievement. He can spend his days saving animals and writing his Cooperstown speech.

- SO Pujols has nothing left to prove in St. Louis. He can leave St. Louis on top and take on a new challenge and more money than any of us can ever dream of. ($30 million a year?)


Meanwhile in Los Angeles...

- The Dodgers fiasco might be finally grinding to a halt. Frank McCourt, in denial like William H. Macy's character in Fargo, might finally realize that he ISN'T just one deal away from keeping control of the team. MLB might take over the Dodgers. They did that once before with the Expos.

- This is a different scenario. That was saving a team from contraction and getting them to Washington DC. The Dodgers need to be lifted from the humiliation of bankruptcy and mismanagement. The Dodgers SHOULD be one of the glamorous franchises. And it would behoove baseball to have a big west coast superpower (sorry Giants fans. Your team isn't a superpower.)

- So if MLB takes over the Dodgers, they can hand pick whomever takes over the team. They will have to be committed to turn the Dodgers back into a powerhouse, make L.A. as baseball crazy as New York and Boston and bring some star power to Dodger Stadium.

- The Dodgers just HAPPENED to have a hole at first base (sorry James Loney). They just HAPPENED to have an MVP candidate to protect Pujols in the lineup with Matt Kemp. They just HAPPEN to play in a winnable division. (Sorry Diamondbacks.) And unless Juan Uribe has more pull than I thought, #5 just HAPPENS to be available in Los Angeles.

- The Dodgers also just HAPPEN to be a team in a desperate situation to have some positive press after all the off the field embarrassment. And they need something, besides a face who ISN'T Frank McCourt, to jumstart season ticket sales.

- If MLB can control who buys the Dodgers, they COULD make "Will you make a big push for Albert Pujols?" a requirement. It would be good for the franchise and could make the Dodgers a marquee franchise again.

Fans are going to show up in St. Louis. It's a new era there anyway.

Pujols (paired with NL MVP candidate Matt Kemp and Cy Young candidate Clayton Kershaw) could have his new challenge.

Bud Selig, someone NOT above colluding, could be in a unique position to handpick someone to bid on Pujols.

Where else is Albert going? Sure Theo Epstein wants to make a big splash with the Cubs, but he has to weed OUT big contracts before bringing in a new one. The Mets are a mess. And maybe the Marlins would make a run at him, but they are a dark horse at best.

Of course the Rangers, White Sox, Nationals and Orioles are never shy about throwing money around. But I can't see Albert going to any of those places.

The Dodgers are the most logical landing place in many ways.
It's a boost to the franchise.
It's a bump in West Coast baseball's interest.
And it could make Albert even more marketable than he is now.

Don't think this ISN'T going through Bud Selig's mind.
It's a chain reaction of events... and it could lead to the image of Albert Pujols playing first base for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

(For the record, I think Pujols is staying put... but you never know!)

The Douchebaggery of Frank McCourt is staggering

It takes a special kind of a--hole to make the headline "Frank McCourt Looted The Dodgers" the SECOND most damning story of the day.

I understand that the Bryan Stowe case is sensitive and he needs an attorney to defend him and the Dodgers and he is already the bad guy in many people's eyes.

But does he REALLY not have the PR savvy to know that sending a lawyer out to put blame on STOWE for his own beating is kind of sort of STAGGERINGLY AWFUL?

I guess it was the last stone unturned.

He made a mockery of the franchise, bankrupted one of the great teams in baseball history, took a major market club and turned them into the A's...

And along the way the team handled the Stowe beating about as badly as possible.

I guess he thought "Oh what do we have to lose? Blame the victim!"

Some slippery lawyer came on 710 ESPN in Los Angeles to speak with Mason and Ireland and proceeded to talk about Stowe's blood alcohol (because being drunk is grounds for being beaten into a coma). And at the same time kept saying "I don't know if that's true, but I heard it."

Ah classy. Blame the victim with something LESS than facts.

And he claimed that security was already outstanding (then why did they bring in tons of police officers AFTER the beating.) And the idea that extra lights in the parking lots would have helped security was laughable. (Then why did they set up more lights.)

When you consider that Stowe was wearing a Giants jersey, I am stunned that he DIDN'T say "Look at what he was wearing!"

McCourt and his lawyer did all but bring John Steigerwald in as a character witness.

What the hell are they thinking?

Did McCourt think "Hey, there's someone out there who still likes me... why don't I piss them off too"?

Even if his lawyer thought they needed to have a strategy for the case, why make this public?

The lawyer on Mason and Ireland poo pooed any PR hit the Dodgers might get for blaming Stowe for his own beating.

"I'm not a PR man. I'm a lawyer."

Then why the hell are you going to the airwaves? Why are you basically doing public relations for the Dodgers?

Short of McCourt beating up Bryan Stowe's son with his bare hands, I can't imagine any other way he could make his public image worse.

The Dodgers could clean up on Off Season Awards

It's funny, everything about the Dodgers this year seems like a catastrophe.
The Brian Stowe incident at the beginning of the year helped lead to the unraveling of the ownership.

Are they bankrupt?
Does MLB control them?
Will the Chinese Government assume control of the Dodgers?

The only thing for certain is that Dodger Stadium is all but empty and their season is lost.

And despite all of that, the Dodgers could find themselves bringing in some hardware when the season is wrapped up.

They have one major award all but in the bag and a few more wins in the final week of the season could net some more.

CLAYTON KERSHAW...
Cy Young Award Winner

Both Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee deserve a lot of votes, especially for putting up stellar numbers in a pitchers ballpark.

And Ian Kennedy's emergence in Phoenix will get some voters attention.

But Kershaw is in line to win the unofficial Triple Crown (Wins, ERA and Strikeouts.) He has let up the fewest hits over 9 innings of any National League pitcher. His 0.99 WHIP is second only to Cole Hamel's 0.98 WHIP. And while I STILL don't understand WAR, he is tied with Cliff Lee with this highest WAR among National League pitchers.

Throw in his 5-0 record against the World Champion Giants (including winning 3 head to head match ups against Tim Lincecum) and he is all but a lock to win the Cy Young at age 23.


MATT KEMP...
National League Most Valuable Player

It's a taller mountain to climb for Kemp, but not because of his numbers.

His 9.0 WAR is the best in baseball.
He has the most total bases and run scored in the National League.
He is in the top 3 of Average, Home Runs, RBI and in the top 4 in OPS.

Only 5 sluggers in all of baseball have homered more than he has, and Chavez Ravine isn't the easiest place to crank them out.

While Ryan Braun might be the front runner, Kemp doesn't exactly have Prince Fielder in his lineup with him.

Plus he plays a Gold Glove caliber Centerfield. The Dodgers' non contending season could keep the MVP trophy off of his mantle, but I think he deserves is.


DON MATTINGLY...
National League Manager of the Year

OK, this one will be a stretch. Kirk Gibson has this all but locked up by sending a Diamondbacks team that NOBODY picked to the post season (assuming they don't fall apart.)

But give Mattingly tons of credit. This team had every reason to fold up tent and Donnie Baseball could have phoned this season in and NOBODY would have blamed him.

Instead, here they are with 9 games left and they are above .500!

Can you imagine if this team has a winning season? This was supposed to be the worst year in Dodger history and in terms of off the field stuff, it was. But in terms of the product on the field, it's not even the worst team of the last 2 years!

Mattingly deserves a ton of credit of focusing on the field and if he comes away with a winner, then the Dodgers have a bright future!

And by the looks of the potential hardware, their present was a lot better than anyone could have expected!

Mattingly and Collins deserve Manager of the Year consideration

It's obvious that Kirk Gibson is going to win the National League manager of the year. Nobody, and I mean NOBODY was picking the Diamondbacks to win the NL West this year, let alone take an 8 1/2 game lead in early September.

So Gibson will add a Manager of the Year trophy next to his MVP (which will no doubt be the subject of another blog post.)

But take a look at what Don Mattingly and Terry Collins have done. Both are playing for big budgeted fiascos. The Dodgers have had as ugly a season as I can remember with all of the behind the scenes nonsense. The McCourt divorce. The handling of the Brian Stowe beating. The MLB take over. The Bankruptcy. The money being taken out of the team for personal reasons. The fans staying away in droves.

There was every reason in the world for the Dodgers to pack up and not show up. And for a while that is exactly what they were doing.

The Mets were also a mess. I thought they were a 90 loss team waiting to happen. The post Madoff Amazin' Mess was a mismatch of broken down veterans, expensive players who wanted out, young players who weren't ready and a parade of players on the disabled list.

And playing in the same Divison as the Phillies and Braves meant the season was irrelevant in April. And come trading deadline, they were sellers.

90 losses may have been a generous prediction.

Yet here we are on September 10th. The Dodgers are just 1 game under .500.
The Mets are 2 games under .500.

It would not take a Herculean effort for both teams to finish with a winning record.

The Dodgers are aided by the fact that Clayton Kershaw should win the NL Cy Young and there is a case for Matt Kemp to win the MVP.

The Mets don't have that star power, but they are finding unlikely heroes and staying focused in a way that I didn't think they had in them.

So give Don Mattingly and Terry Collins a lot of credit.
Both the Dodgers and Mets are ugly places off of the field and if the on field product reflected that, nobody would have blinked.

But if they could weather the storm of the craziness of 2011 and say "Hey! At least we put a winning product on the field" then THAT is worthy of Manager of the Year consideration.

Color me impressed, Dodger and Met fans.

Dodgers... lock up Clayton Kershaw NOW!

Look, I know the Dodgers are a mess right now.

Frank McCourt took one of the most glamorous and successful teams in baseball history and ran them into the ground.



I am not even sure if the Dodgers have the money to buy those plastic helmets for Ice Cream Sundaes anymore.



But somehow they need to find the money to sign Clayton Kershaw to a long term deal RIGHT NOW.



He hasn't been arbitration eligible yet so this season, that I think will earn him a Cy Young Award or at least SHOULD put one on his mantle, he will make $500,000.



A. J. Burnett will make 32 times that this year.



At age 23, this is Kershaw's second excellent season with the Dodgers and he can be a positive face on the team.



Well guess what?

Someday, and that day may come while I am typing this sentence, a new owner will take over the Dodgers. The new owner has a lot of work to do to restore the fans confidence, but not as much as you would think.



First of all the new owner needs to be better than Frank McCourt. That my friend is a low bar.



But they also need to put together a new positive identity for the team. And guess what? It might already be there.



The great eras in Los Angeles Dodgers history often are symbolized by a pitcher (or two.)

The 1960s Dodgers were best remembered for having Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale.



The Dodger teams of the 1970s had the amazing home grown infield of Garvey, Lopes, Russell and Cey. But they also had a future Hall of Famer in Don Sutton in the rotation. They also had Burt Hooton and the great Tommy John.



What player comes to mind when you think of the 1981 World Championship?

I am betting it will be Fernando Valenzuela and Fernando Mania.



How about 1988? OK, it is probably the Kirk Gibson home run.

But the REAL MVP was Orel Hershiser. Do the Dodgers beat the Mets OR the A's without Orel's 3 complete game victories (and a save)?



Even the 1995 Division is best remembered for Hideo Nomo's magical season.



Positive memories for the Dodgers begin with the identity making ace.



And Drysdale, Koufax, Sutton, Valenzuela, Hershiser and Nomo were all home grown Dodgers.

So if Kershaw.



If the Dodgers will turn it around, their home grown Cy Young winner will have a lot to do with it.



This isn't signing a 30 year old pitcher to a long term contract and seeing it blow up in your face.



This is taking a young player and making sure you have his prime locked up!



Sign him to a 6 year deal NOW! That way you know you have him for 10 seasons in a Dodger uniform. Probably will have a Cy Young on his mantle. He already has post season experience. And when the contract is up, he'll only be 30 years old!



Out of all the awfulness of this season, the one thing Dodger fans can even BEGIN to cling to is the obscure hope for a better tomorrow.



The Clayton Kershaw era could be what they are looking for.

Sign him now. Circumvent the arbitration and first round of Free Agency and say to Dodger fans "HERE is a player you can get attached to!"



After this year, the Dodgers OWE this to their fans.

Dodgers file for Bankruptcy... nice job

I can't claim to be a financial wiz, but I have a feeling if I ran the Dodgers they might be profitable. I mean it isn't like the Dodgers are an obscure team... a team in a run down stadium... a team in a small market... a team whose fan base is indifferent to baseball... a team with no history... a team overwhelmed by the local NFL team.

They are the f*cking DODGERS!

How can you go BANKRUPT running the Dodgers?

Frank McCourt found a way.
The fire sale should begin soon.

Soon the Dodgers will be in worse financial shape than the characters in the OTHER Frank McCourt's book, Angela's Ashes.

(Yeah that was a stretch, but how often can you connect two Frank McCourts?)

It's all settled for the Dodgers...

Oh the McCourts thing is a mess and Selig seems willing to let the team die on the vine. But there is one thing that can be said beyond a shadow of a doubt:

The Dodgers suck.
And they will be dismantled in a few weeks.

Seriously, tonight they lost at home to the worst team in baseball AGAIN.
Tonight they lost on a 10 hit shutout.
10 hits... no runs.

And because they are still paying Manny Ramirez, sitting at home after dodging any steroid question, the Dodgers may not make payroll next month.

They stink.
They are awful.

And if they are going to be awful with nobody in the stands, they might as well be awful with nobody in the stands with a lower payroll.

The fire sale is going to take place in 2 weeks.

By the time July is done, the Dodgers will basically be the current roster of the Albuquerque Isotopes.

In fact, Dodger fans should just start following the Isotopes NOW just so they can be more familiar with their team in August.

Some pretty low expectations in Dodger Town

The Dodgers can meet payroll and suddenly that is cause for celebration?
Seriously, that is what it has come to?

Congrats Mr. McCourt. You own one of the most famous baseball teams who play in the second biggest market in the country with a rabid fan base and you have made enough money to not bounce the checks.

MAZELTOV!

Now what are you going to do NEXT month?
You can't pull the Winona Ryder in Reality Bites trick of paying for everyone's gas.

The Dodgers will start dumping players in 2 weeks.

Hey McCourt... Manny wasn't a free agent

Yesterday Mason and Ireland on 710 ESPN in Los Angeles had beleaguered Dodgers owner Frank McCourt on the air for a half an hour of questions being asked and calls from fans.

It should be noted that he will be beleaguered for a lot longer than he will be the owner of the Dodgers.

He of course painted himself as the victim, all the while saying "I take full responsibility." He pushed the blame elsewhere and made it clear that the $126 million he took from the Dodgers was NOT true (he said it was only about $100 million, most of it loans and it was cumulative.

I admire the guy to a degree for facing the music. But when he kept saying things like "I learned my lesson" and "I don't need all of those things anymore" which sounds a lot like someone saying "I swear this is my last cigarette."

One caller called in to ask why can't a marquee franchise like the Dodgers sign a Type A free agent. A good question.

McCourt dismissed it saying "What about Manny Ramirez?"

I so wish either Mason or Ireland pointed out that Ramirez was a trade. Manny wasn't on the open market and offered top dollar by the Dodgers?

He was in a trade with the Red Sox and Pirates of which the Red Sox picked up most of the contract. And yes he resigned with the Dodgers, but only after he received NO OTHER OFFERS.

The question was valid, especially when the likes of CC Sabathia could have been the difference between a trip to the World Series and an NLCS exit.

Ah well... the soap opera goes on as the Dodgers won't be able to meet payroll.
Look for the Chavez Ravine firesale coming soon.

This "Being Controled By MLB" thing works for the Dodgers

The Dodgers were absolutely reeling. They went on a 5 game losing streak. (Only Tony LaRussa's inexplicable decision to pitch to Matt Kemp on Sunday afternoon kept it from being a 6 game losing streak.)

They were beaten soundly on Tuesday 10-1 by Atlanta.
Then on Wednesday, Bud Selig and company took over the team, shocked that Frank McCourt couldn't keep the team afloat financially. (Never mind the fact that Selig KNEW he didn't have the cash to keep the team afloat. Let's not let facts sneak into this.)

Since MLB took over the team?
They beat the Braves 6-1 on Wednesday.
They won with another Matt Kemp walk off shot yesterday.

And today they went to Wrigley and clobbered the Cubs 12-2.

The Dodgers are now above .500.
They are 3-0 after the take over.

Maybe Dodger fans shouldn't be so quick to see a new owner!

Albert Pujols will be a Dodger or a Met… and I predict a conspiracy theory

A bizarre and round about series of events and coincidences have made it clear to me that Albert Pujols will almost certainly not be a member of the St. Louis Cardinals next year.

Before Pujols files for free agency, two large market franchises will change ownership and be in position to bid for him, and I believe Bud Selig will be manipulating the whole thing to help preserve his legacy.

That’s right, I am predicting a conspiracy before there are any facts or events to back up my theory. I admit that is no easy trick. But I think I am on to something.

Follow me…

Bud Selig is retiring in 2012. With the steroid era evidently behind him and if baseball avoids a work stoppage (and the NFL and NBA have one) then he will be able to claim that he left the game clean and thriving with labor peace.

But there are four gigantic messes he needs to clean up before riding off into the sunset.

Two won’t be covered here, but I will mention them: The Rays and the A’s stadium disasters. Neither team can last in their current dumps and nor have a viable solution for survival, especially if the Giants can block the A’s move to San Jose. But that is another post.

The big BIG mess is the state of the Mets and Dodgers, two of the flagship franchises of the National League. According to USA Today, only the Yankees and Red Sox are worth more than the Dodgers and those teams plus the Cubs are the only ones worth more than the Mets.

I don’t think it is stretch to call New York and Los Angeles big markets. And guess what? They are both in financial chaos.

The Dodgers have been mismanaged to the point where MLB had to take the unprecedented steps of essentially removing the owner from power. (We’ll see if Frank McCourt surrenders the power of the team.)

And the Mets should be on notice. If the twisted finances of the McCourt divorce can make Selig and company take over the Dodgers, then being swindled by Bernie Madoff (and not being sure what they knew in advance) should be even a greater cause for MLB to step in and take the car keys away from the Wilpons.

In the very least, the Mets should be forced to sell.

So that would mean the Mets and Dodgers would have new ownership going into the 2012 season. And also have a disillusioned fan base, declining attendance and a natural division rival playing well (the Phillies for the Mets and the Giants for the Dodgers.)

Whomever is going to run the Mets and the Dodgers will need to assure their paying customers (and TV viewers and sponsors) that not only are the bad days behind them but glamorous superstar days are ahead.

The Giants were in a similar boat when Peter Magowan took over the team in the wake of the proposed move to Tampa Bay. He found the quickest way to get the fan base energized: He signed the best player in baseball, Barry Bonds.

Which brings us to Albert Pujols. He’s a free agent to be. He has nothing left to prove in St. Louis when he finishes this, his 11th season. He has given the Cardinals a championship, post season heroics, MVPs and done so with class and a flair for the dramatic. And, as I said in a previous video, Cardinal fans can NEVER boo him.

Pujols could need a new challenge in his life, the biggest contract in baseball history and a chance to be a hero in a brand new market.

(See Rose, Pete. See Jackson, Reggie. And Albert is better than both of them!)

And if just so happens that the Dodgers have an opening at first base. I may not be 100% sure how VORP works, but I can guess that Albert Pujols replacing James Loney is an improvement.

And the Mets have Ike Davis, who is a nice player. When you have the chance to get one of the great offensive players of all time, you might think about sacrificing a nice player or two!

Both the Dodgers and the Mets will have new owners, money to spend and a city to impress. And they will BOTH bid on Albert Pujols.

Why do I say that with such certainty? Because Selig will make sure of it. Captain Bud will not let an owner take over the Dodgers nor the Mets unless they were intending on trying to sign Pujols.

It makes sense for the Dodgers to win back their fans and show there is a new era in Chavez Ravine.

It makes sense for the Mets to turn the page on the Wilpon fiasco (and no doubt Sandy Alderson and Terry Collins would welcome Albert’s arrival.)

It makes sense for labor peace as players making big contracts is always looked on fondly by the Players Association.

And it makes sense for Selig as he leave the game with franchises other than the Yankees and Red Sox bidding over the biggest free agents.

And which ever team can’t land Pujols will have a nice consolation prize in Prince Fielder.

Think Selig is above this sort of backroom dealings? Or perhaps not clever enough?

PUH-lease. I am not going to even go into the whole “Used Car Salesman” past of Mr. Selig.

This was the guy who maneuvered the ownership of the Expos, Marlins and Red Sox around so his hand picked successor would take over in Boston instead of the McCourts.

This was the guy who claimed to have no clue about the steroid culture, even though allegations were made public as far back as 1988, when Peter Ueberroth was commissioner.

This was the guy who was part of the owners group that ousted Fay Vincent for not doing their bidding and installing himself as owner/commissioner. It was supposed to be temporary. That was 1992.

This was one of the many owners found guilty of collusion in the 1980s.

Shady wheeling and dealing are right in Bud Selig’s wheelhouse.

So a nudge here and there and making sure the new owners come with an aggressive eye on Albert is not as outlandish as colluding, kicking the commissioner out and not noticing that the players all were bigger than the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man.

You heard it here first on Sully Baseball.

I am declaring it a conspiracy before it actually happens.

Colluding is and always will be part of Bud Selig’s legacy.

Red Sox fans... can you IMAGINE if this guy bought our team?

He wanted to!
Frank McCourt is a Boston guy and he wanted to buy the Sox from the John Harrington and the Yawkey family.

Instead John Henry and company took over in 2002 and won two more World Series titles in the first 7 years of his ownership than the Yawkeys did in nearly 70 years.

Meanwhile McCourt took over the Dodgers... and now they need to be taken over by baseball. Not loaned money like the spend crazy Diamondbacks. Not bailed out like the Madoff sucker Mets.

Nope. TAKEN OVER! It's Bud Selig saying "We are taking your toys away."

When has this happened before? Well, kind of once when nobody wanted to buy the Expos and Bud Selig wanted to make sure John Henry moved from the Marlins to the marquee franchise Red Sox and Jeffrey Loria could take over the Marlins.

The Expos were part of baseball and run in a disgraceful manner, yet still managed to put winning products on the field in 2002 and 2003.

That was a different scenario. The Expos were devastated financially after the strike and couldn't draw small crowds to Stade Olympique. They had no TV deal and desperately needed to move. Everyone knew they had to move to Washington DC (the only place that had a big league ready park) but they also needed to appease Peter Angelos and the Orioles. So while that was being hashed out, MLB owned the Expos and destroyed a once wonderfully quirky franchise.

This new situation is different. This isn't an expansion team gone wrong. This isn't a team that needs to be relocated.

This is the FREAKING LOS ANGELES DODGERS!
If there is any team in baseball that should be a big spending colossus like the Yankees it should be the Dodgers! The play in Los Angeles! They have a terrific stadium... a steady fan base... money... tradition... stars want to play in L.A.

It can be argued that Frank McCourt is the worst owner in the history of American sports.
In 2004 he bought the Dodgers... one of the glamor franchises in baseball. And in 8 years it was transformed into such a catastrophe that the league had to pull and Expos.

IMAGINE this with the Red Sox!
Imagine there is no 2004... no 2007... the Curse is alive... this obscene divorce hanging over the team... the experience of going to the ballpark is WORSE... and it is so bad that baseball needed to take over.

It could have happened. And Bud Selig made sure the Sox were sold to John Henry.

It's not often I say this, but MAN am I thankful for Bud Selig's decision.

So now baseball owns the Dodgers, which means there will be a new owner soon.
Why not me?

How could I be worse?

Dodger security = going on a diet

In the wake of the Bryan Stow tragedy, the Dodgers are pulling out all of the stops. They had a bad ass press conference at Chavez Ravine, brought out a legion of cop cars and the police, led by Chief Charlie Beck, promised "a sea of blue... not Dodger blue."

There will be added police protection. The poorly lit parts of the parking lot will be lit.
There will be no tolerance for punks, agreeing with the sentiments of my video.

A new leaf has been turned over. And the police have assured us that this security will be in place until the end of the series.

(Record scratch.)

Wait what? The SEASON, right? Not the series with the Cardinals.

Nope.
Until the end of the Cardinals series, and then they will evaluate what they need to do.

Um... didn't they just do that? They need increased security, light the dark areas of the parking lot and throw out people who cause trouble.

There, I just did your evaluation. Do what you are doing.

The problem isn't a Cardinals series. (Are there a lot of rowdy Missourians showing up to Los Angeles?) It is the drunk punks who make the experience unpleasant for so many people. So make it a place where they can NOT be drunk punks and people can feel good about going there with their families.

So what is really going on here?

I'll tell you. The Dodgers are going on a diet.

Trust me, I know about diets. I've been struggling with my weight since I was a zygote. I've lost weight. I've put it back on. And when I make the vow to lose weight, I make a big show of it. I avoid bread. I eat my fruit. I work out hard.

I drop pounds. I feel good. I listen to the Rocky soundtrack.

Then I sneak a cookie.
Then I have something I should have for dinner. "I've been good."

Then I have a sandwich.

Then I sneak something at the Supermarket sample tray.

Then I say "Why yes, I will have that brownie deep fried!"

Next thing you know I've put on more weight than when the diet began.

My "After" picture looks worse than my "Before" picture.

It is easy to put on a good show when you start. The person trying to kick smoking, doing drugs or internet porn is going to look really good at first.

It is the weeks and months afterward that are hard. And it makes me wonder what are the Dodgers really doing here?

Something Police Chief Charlie Beck said caught my ear.

"The reality is that Dodger Stadium is safer. But that is not the perception. So we are going to make the perception match the reality."

Whoa.

Did you catch that? It is a PERCEPTION that Dodger Stadium is not safe, so let's change the perception.

Let's not change the reality. Make it SEEM safer. Put on a show. The attention is on the Dodgers and they need to create the perception that it is safer. And soon there will be a new story to distract everyone... and like me sneaking a cookie, it will be back to the way it was.

And yet there will be the image of Charlie Beck talking tough.
The show will be made... and the Dodgers wouldn't have to spend money on security.

This is crap.

The Dodgers are a big market club. They can afford to throw millions at players. Do the same for the experience of going to Dodger Stadium. And not for one series and not noodle around in a committee. You think you are in a bad financial position now? Wait until families stop showing up.

MLB, let's cut to the chase and take control of this team from the McCourts before this fiasco continues. One of the flagship franchises in the game is being run into the ground with no regard for the product they put on the field nor the safety of their fans.

And that is MY perception.

Now if you will excuse me, I am going to avoid this cookie.

Hey Dodgers... what is wrong with this picture?

On July 21, 2009... less than a year ago, Cliff Lee was a pitcher for the Indians.
He threw a complete game 2-1 victory for the lowly Indians and as the defending Cy Young winner was on the trade block.

And the Dodgers, who made it to the 2008 NLCS, desperately needed an ace pitcher. They had some decent pitching but were also leaning on the Clayton Kershaws and Chad Billingsleys too much. They needed a stud to put them over the top.

He was traded to the Phillies 10 days later... and threw 8 shutout innings in the NLCS against the Dodgers.

He's been traded three times in the past year.

The Dodgers still desperately need a #1 starter.
Cliff Lee would have been PERFECT ace for the Dodgers. They may have won the 2009 NL Pennant and probably would be in first place as I type this instead of being in 4th place, 6 games back of the Padres in the loss column.

And yet with the need for Lee, the minor leaguers to trade, the pitchers park for him to thrive and the big market to resign him.

And how many proposed trades did we hear involving the Dodgers?
That would be ZERO!!!

Hey Frank McCourt... remind us how your divorce isn't affecting how the team is put together again?

MANNY RAMIREZ TRADED TO OAKLAND ATHLETICS

Now THIS is how you start a rumor!

OK, he wasn't really traded to the Oakland A's.
But I think the A's should deal for him... because I think the Dodgers will make the trade.

The A's are having a much better season than anyone thought they would have.
Yet they need a thumper in the middle of their line up. Kurt Suzuki's 4 homers currently lead the pack.

The West is completely winnable. Yeah the Rangers look good now... just wait until it heats up. The Mariners club house resembles the group dinner in the Real House Wives of New Jersey and the Angels can't get out of their own way.

The A's have every once in a while shown the guts to go for it (remember Matt Holliday coming to Oakland last year) and Manny could be what the doctor ordered.

Remember, Manny plays best when he is warmly welcomed. He was the greatest thing to happen to L.A. since Shaq when he was traded to the Dodgers in 2008.

He was Happy Manny... and trust me, as a Sox fan I will tell you that Happy Manny is awesome.

Moody Manny is awful. Everyone walks on eggshells and wonders if he will even play. Well the Honeymoon is over in L.A. A steroid suspension and a subpar second half and an illtimed shower during the playoffs will do that.

Now he is unhappy again and staring at free agency again.

And while it is early, the Dodgers are floating around .500 (and it took a 4 game winning streak to GET to .500.)

A trade to a market where he can relax, be adored by the fans and pad his stats could be what he needs. And if he needs a little more, BALCO is right across the Bay.

But Sully, you say. Why would the DODGERS do it?

Well under normal circumstances, I would agree with that. The face of the Dodgers is Manny... and while his home run numbers are down he is hitting .393 with an OPS of 1.096.

But remember, this isn't normal circumstances.

This is the Frank McCourt divorce era.
This is the Dodger era where the team got so close to the World Series in back to back years and yet wouldn't improve the team in the offseason as the McCourts are getting into a divorce that makes Sandra Bullock and Jesse James look like two people who just drifted apart.

Teams have dumped players for salary purposes since the days of Connie Mack's first dynasty. Star players have been traded to cover the owner's financial issues.

(Did someone say Babe Ruth and No No Nanette?)

So Manny is 38 years old... his contract is running out but he still has about $15 million of deferred payments and a lot of his 2010 salary to pay. You think he wouldn't mind taking SOME of that off of his books?

Which is why I think the acquisition of Manny isn't so far out of the question.

And a team like Oakland is the perfect stress free place for him to land, give a post season boost, make everyone think he is the slugger we all remember, and have him squeeze one more contract from a gullible GM. (Did someone say Omar Minaya?)

So you heard it here first.
Manny to the A's.

E mail me at info@sullybaseball.com if you thought this was a real trade announcement.

I call to the stand... DODGERS OWNER FRANK McCOURT

Remember when Frank McCourt had the stones to say the divorce is not affecting the team?

Not to use legalese because no doubt he is hearing a LOT of that these days...
But to refute that, all I have to do is point to two games being played in the National League last night.


EXHIBIT A: Randy Wolf

In 2009 he leads the NL with 34 starts, gives the Dodgers 214 innings and an ERA of 3.23.

The Dodgers desperately need pitching depth going into 2010.
Wolf is not even OFFERED a contract and he signs with Milwaukee. (Because usually big markets like Milwaukee can out bid tiny media markets like Los Angeles.)

Last night Wolf beat Arizona, throwing 6 innings and 3 runs. It was a blowout game, so two relievers got in some work. He ERA rose to a still respectable 3.95.


EXHIBIT B: Charlie Haeger

The Dodgers starting pitcher went into last night's game with eye popping stats... eye poppingly horrible.

The knuckleballer took an 0-3 record with a 6.56 ERA to Chavez Ravine to take on division rival Colorado. He had started 3 of the Dodgers most lopsided losses of the year. But he's a knuckleballer! You live by them and you die by them!

Well tonight was more death.
He faced 5 batters.
All 5 reached.
All 5 scored.
He didn't retire a batter.

As a starter he threw 0 innings. Usually I hate it when someone says "I could have pitched better than that" but in this case, how could I have pitched WORSE?

And when Joe Torre realized that not only was he down 6 runs before his team came to bat but that he was dipping into his bullpen for 9 innings, I wonder if he glanced over and saw what was happening with the Brewers and the nice start they got from Wolf.

Halladay, Lackey and Lee all changed uniforms this past off season and the Dodger front office is making moves that remove the Randy Wolfs of the world from the team and puts in the Charlie Haegers... on a team that made the NLCS each of the last 2 seasons.

Would a team, especially the biggest team in the second biggest media market in the country, make personel decisions like that if the owners weren't involved in a divorce that makes the Tiger/Elin situation look like an amicable split?

Your honor... I rest my case.

You keep telling yourself that, Frank McCourt

I am always fascinated when a public figure says something that everyone on the planet Earth knows is Bullsh*t and acts like we're going to buy it.

Maybe it is the whole Clinton "I did not have sexual relations with that woman" fascination.
Or hearing Pete Rose say he never bet on baseball all of those years.
Or Clemens, Bonds, McGwire and Palmeiro saying they never used 'roids.
Or hearing how happy James Cameron is for Kathryn Bigelow.

So the latest "Does he really think we are buying it" moment has to come from Frank McCourt. (No not the Angela's Ashes guy... the other one.)

The other McCourt... the one who owns the Dodgers... claims that his messy War of the Roses like divorce is not affecting the Dodgers.

Of course it isn't... it certainly did affect how the Dodgers did business this off season. The team, which has fallen 3 games short of the World Series each of the last two seasons, desperately needs an ace pitcher. The Dodgers have lots of young talent with big league experience... and Roy Halladay and John Lackey switched teams as did Cliff Lee twice.

Did the Dodgers ever figure into those moves? Nope.

They let Randy Wolf go for nothing... same with their lead off hitter Orlando Hudson... same with spark plug Juan Pierre... same with inning eating veteran Jon Garland.

Oh yeah, Manny Ramirez is clearly in decline and now sulking, and the Dodgers made no attempt to beef up the lineup either.


And did I mention the Los Angeles Dodgers, the marquee team in the second biggest media market in the country, has a lower payroll than the Minnesota Twins?

And this retreat just HAPPENS to be taking place while the owner is in a nasty split that could cost him $1 million a month.

If the Dodgers fall a pitcher or a bat short of the World Series again this year, then you can talk to the McCourts... who will no doubt be lying in their foyer with their chandelier crashed around them.