Bud Selig rejects Dodgers TV contract, nullifying McCourt divorce deal

LATimes ^ | 6/20/11 | LATimes

[illiac]

The settlement between Frank and Jamie McCourt announced Friday was contingent on Commissioner Bud Selig's approval of a new Dodgers TV contract. A provision in that proposed contract that would have funneled $173.5 million to the estranged couple immediately was apparently unacceptable to Selig, leaving the team's future in limbo.

[Hayzo]

Being an SF Giant fan, all I can say is “please pass the popcorn”!

[illiac]

YUP! Should be quite a show....

[Beaten Valve]

Seling is correct.

Allowing McCourt to collect millions in advance payments on a new TV contract, only so he can bail himself out of debt & pay off his wife in dovorce court, will only continue to hurt the financial viability of the Dodgers.

It’s time to get rid of him and his carpet-baging wife...

[Hebrews 11:6]

From the O'Malleys, arguably the best owners in baseball, to McClown in one generation. It seemed impossible that another owner, let alone another in LA, could rival Donald Sterling, but here we are.

Dodger fans are boycotting this year, deservedly so. I know I'm not attending. That alone should force out the happy couple.

[tcrlaf]

I thought you folks might be interested to know what OpenSecrets.Org turned up:

MCCOURT, FRANK
LOS ANGELES,CA 90012 LOS ANGELES DODGERS/OWNER 8/31/07 $25,000 Democratic Congressional Campaign Cmte (D)
MCCOURT, FRANK
LOS ANGELES,CA 90067 LOS ANGELES DODGERS/OWNER 6/30/09 $10,000 Democratic Congressional Campaign Cmte (D)
MCCOURT, FRANK
BEVERLY HILLS,CA 90212 LA DODGERS/OWNER 11/3/09 $2,400 Leahy, Patrick (D)
MCCOURT, FRANK
LOS ANGELES,CA 90024 3/31/07 $2,300 Clinton, Hillary (D)
MCCOURT, FRANK
LOS ANGELES,CA 90024 MCCOURT COMPANY/FOUNDER 10/30/08 $2,300 Markey, Edward J (D)
MCCOURT, FRANK
LOS ANGELES,CA 90067 LOS ANGELES DODGERS/OWNER 10/31/08 $2,300 Becerra, Xavier (D)
MCCOURT, FRANK
LOS ANGELES,CA 90067 LOS ANGELES DODGERS/OWNER 4/4/08 $2,300 Boxer, Barbara (D)
MCCOURT, FRANK
LOS ANGELES,CA 90067 LOS ANGELES DODGERS/OWNER 4/4/08 $2,300 Boxer, Barbara (D)
MCCOURT, FRANK
LOS ANGELES,CA 90067 LOS ANGELES DODGERS/OWNER 5/2/09 $1,187 Becerra, Xavier (D)
MCCOURT, FRANK H
LOS ANGELES,CA 90024 LOS ANGELES DODGERS/OWNER 3/31/07 $1,150 Lautenberg, Frank R (D)
MCCOURT, JAMIE
LOS ANGELES,CA 90024 LOS ANGELES DODGERS/VICE CHAIRMAN 2/9/05 $5,000 Major League Baseball Commissioner’s Ofc
MCCOURT, JAMIE
LOS ANGELES,CA 90024 LOS ANGELES DODGERS/VICE CHAIRMAN 3/21/06 $5,000 Major League Baseball Commissioner’s Ofc
MCCOURT, JAMIE
LOS ANGELES,CA 90024 LOS ANGELES DODGERS/VICE CHAIRMAN 3/19/07 $5,000 Major League Baseball Commissioner’s Ofc
MCCOURT, JAMIE
LOS ANGELES,CA 90024 LOS ANGELES DODGERS/VICE CHAIRMAN 7/15/08 $5,000 Major League Baseball Commissioner’s Ofc
MCCOURT, JAMIE
LOS ANGELES,CA 90067 LA DODGERS/CEO 3/9/09 $5,000 Moving Phoenix Forward PAC
MCCOURT, JAMIE
LOS ANGELES,CA 90067 LOS ANGELES DODGERS/PRESIDENT 6/12/09 $2,400 Becerra, Xavier (D)
MCCOURT, JAMIE
LOS ANGELES,CA 90067 LOS ANGELES DODGERS/PRESIDENT 6/12/09 $2,400 Becerra, Xavier (D)
MCCOURT, JAMIE
LOS ANGELES,CA 90067 LA DODGERS/OWNER 3/5/08 $2,300 Barnes, Kay (D)
MCCOURT, JAMIE
LOS ANGELES,CA 90067 LOS ANGELES DODGERS/VICE CHAIRMAN A 4/4/08 $2,300 Boxer, Barbara (D)
MCCOURT, JAMIE
LOS ANGELES,CA 90067 LOS ANGELES DODGERS/VICE CHAIRMAN A 4/4/08 $2,300 Boxer, Barbara (D)
MCCOURT, JAMIE
LOS ANGELES,CA 90024 THE MCCOURT COMPANY/VICE PRESIDENT 10/30/08 $2,300 Markey, Edward J (D)
MCCOURT, JAMIE
LOS ANGELES,CA 90024 LOS ANGELES DODGERS/PRESIDENT 9/15/06 $2,000 Becerra, Xavier (D)
MCCOURT, JAMIE
LOS ANGELES,CA 90024 LOS ANGELES DODGERS/PRESIDENT 8/27/07 $500 Becerra, Xavier (D)
MCCOURT, JAMIE L
LOS ANGELES,CA 90024 LA DODGERS/CHAIR/VICE CHAIR 3/31/07 $2,300 Clinton, Hillary (D)
MCCOURT, JAMIE L
LOS ANGELES,CA 90024 NONE/HOMEMAKER 3/31/07 $1,150 Lautenberg, Frank R (D)
MCCOURT, JAMIE L MRS
LOS ANGELES,CA 90012 LOS ANGELES DODGERS/OWNER 3/31/07 $2,300 Dodd, Chris (D)

Hubby and wife are BIG-TIME Democrat supporters.

[Buckeye McFrog]

as a Giants fan you’ve gotta love this.

Can bouncing paychecks and replacement players be far behind?

[NoLibZone]

Great news.

Selig doesn’t want McCourt to have the Dodgers.

[justiceseeker93]

Selig is nothing but a total schmuck, sticking his nose into a matter he has no business doing.

McCourt may have his warts, but he signed a valid contract which would only increase the value of the Dodgers' franchise. Selig's only causes for seizing a team from an owner should be financial instability or bankruptcy, or criminal behavior on the part of the ownership. McCourt is in none of these categories.

I'm looking forward to the Emperor With No Clothes being sued and losing, if that's the way he wants to play the game.

His entire tenure as baseball commissar has been an abomination to fans with a respect for the history and tradition of the game. Selig is a typical crony capitalist (of course, a big time Democrat) who favors tyranny over freedom!

[TSgt]

The Jackson Hole Dodgers has a nice ring to it!

[justiceseeker93]

Selig is nothing but a total schmuck, sticking his nose into a matter he has no business doing.

McCourt may have his warts, but he signed a valid contract which would only increase the value of the Dodgers' franchise. Selig's only causes for seizing a team from an owner should be financial instability or bankruptcy, or criminal behavior on the part of the ownership. McCourt is in none of these categories.

I'm looking forward to the Emperor With No Clothes being sued and losing, if that's the way he wants to play the game.

His entire tenure as baseball commissar has been an abomination to fans with a respect for the history and tradition of the game. Selig is a typical crony capitalist (of course, a big time Democrat) who favors tyranny over freedom!

[Yaelle]

My cousin was wearing this shirt at our Fathers Day picnic yesterday.

http://www.markcubansavethedodgers.com/store-2

(don’t know how to post pics on iPad)

[NoLibZone]

I had no idea.

Their life philosophy explains much about how the conduct themselves.

[La Enchiladita]

What the McCourts have done to the Dodgers and the game of baseball is exactly like what the Ubamas are doing to America, using power, position and money to aggrandize themselves and live large.

It’s not surprising to find that liberal guilt, over their ill-gotten gains, leads the McCourts to donate to Dem campaigns, the only question being who is the biggest dumbass, McCourt or the pols.

I’m no fan of Selig either, but at least he made one right move here.

[justiceseeker93]

How can the new contract hurt the financial viability of the Dodgers? A huge contract like that can only add to the value of the team.

There's obviously some personal antagonism here on the part of the Emperor against McCourt. McCourt has his problems, but he's not (yet) bankrupt - although Selig and crew are doing their best to see that he is - and he's not a criminal. There's no reason for Selig to intercede.

Dodger fans who want Selig's crew from Park Avenue to own the team should be careful of what they wish for. Just go back and look at how their ownership of the Montreal Expos worked out - they haven't had a winning record since the Seligites took control of that team, and their attendance was dreadful.

You've been reading too much pro-Selig propaganda from the LA Slimes and the rest of the leftist MSM. He deserves to be brought down to size and hopefully he will.

[Wiggins]

Selig had a different approach toward the the Wilpon’s who own the Mets who he allowed to take on a new owner to bail themselves out of Ponzi Scheme. He also allowed the Wilpon’s to borrow 25 million from MLB to make payroll but denied McCourt the same loan. I guess Selig and the baseball gods prefer Ponzi schemes over divorces. PS. I am not a McCourt or Dodger fan either.

[justiceseeker93]

What have the McCourts done to the Dodgers? Hey, they're down right now, but they've been in the playoffs four of the seven years he's owned them, so that's a better record than under the previous FOXie management.

Show me the reason why the Emperor with No Clothes should be objecting to a contract that can only add value to the franchise. Seizing a team that's not in bankruptcy, and where the ownership is not into criminal activity, would be unprecedented in sports history.

[justiceseeker93]

Why don't you look up Selig's contributions over the years? You'll see that he's every bit of a big time 'Rat. In fact, he became Commissar just as Clinton was about to entire the White House (no coincidence there) and he hasn't let in any owners since then who might be connected to the GOP. The last MLB owner who could be legitimately called a Republican was George W. Bush.

So this Selig-McCourt thing is an intra-'Rat intramural spat.

[okie01]

Show me the reason why the Emperor with No Clothes should be objecting to a contract that can only add value to the franchise.

If the bulk of the TV contract is paid out to Jamie McCourt in the divorce settlement (which is inevitable), then the next owner (after Frank McCourt sells out, which is also inevitable) will be stuck with a franchise which cannot be competitive.

I don't often find myself on the same side as Bud Selig...but this is one of those times.

[La Enchiladita]

If you don’t closely follow events west of the Rockies (or west of the Hudson), here are the basic facts about McCourt’s ownership of the Dodgers. McCourt bought the Dodgers from News Corp (Fox Sports) with $150 million he borrowed from Bank of America, $75 million he borrowed from Major League Baseball (MLB) and a $196 million debt package from Fox. That’s $421 million of debt.

After the purchase, McCourt rearranged this debt to his liking. McCourt traded his Boston parking lots to Fox in exchange for forgiveness of some of the Fox debt. Then he caused a Dodger affiliate, Dodger Tickets, LLC, to borrow $250 million to refinance most of the remaining acquisition debt. Plus McCourt cashed in on $50 million of “rebates” from Fox. With this rearrangement, McCourt effectively purchased the Dodgers – for a final purchase price of between $355 million and $371 million – in exchange for parking lots and $300 million (more or less) of debt. By all reports, McCourt put not one dime of his own into this purchase. Moreover, McCourt did not himself have to borrow the money used for the purchase – he got the Dodgers to do it for him.

It’s been frequently reported that McCourt “bought the Dodgers on a credit card”. That’s only half the story. The other half of the story, the more important half, is that McCourt bought the Dodgers on the Dodgers’ credit card.

Extracted from here: http://itsaboutthemoney.net/archives/2011/06/20/commissioner-selig-frank-mccourt-must-go-a-petition/