chukpark

What if the Dodgers really are interested in Vladimir Gurerrero and
Rafael Palmeiro, but Frank McCourt doesn't want Dan Evans to negotiate
the contracts? Maybe McCourt wants to wait till he buys the team and
his guy will start negotiations with Vlady-daddy. Because, think about
it. McCourt is moving to Los Angeles. If he was going to put the team
on a starvation diet, and enrage the fan base, why would he want to
move to L.A.?

Have you heard that one of the reasons he was interested in the
Dodgers was because of the value of the real estate Dodger Stadium is
built on? If McCourt does want to build houses where Dodger Stadium
is, wouldn't he want to ingratiate himself to Dodger fans first to get
some buy-in from the community?

What better way to sway Dodger fans than, once the sale is offcial,
for McCourt to announce the signing of Vladimir Guerrero? This might
sound like I'm being an optimistic conspiracy theorist, but it really
might be happening. Consider the eerie silence that's surrounded the
Guerrero negotiations. Weird, huh? Then consider that perhaps McCourt
has already gotten word to Guerrero not to sign until the sale is
official. Also Palmeiro, why hasn't he signed? What are they waiting
for? Hopefully it's for McCourt. I just hope he doesn't try to tear
down Dodger Stadium.

george cutshaw

As a pessimistic conspiracy theorist, I look at this as a plot by Selig to
castrate the Dodgers.

Also, the "eerie silence" regarding Vlad may be related to his back problems
and non-insurability.

solarbeat

I see this theory a lot, the 'turn the dodgers into a small market
team' thing... I must've missed the original explanation. Can somebody
tell mw why the league would want to do this?

gnork

Because the Dodgers have been winning too much? No, that can't be it. The
truth is the league is much better off with the Dodgers as a big market team.
The Guerrero talk is blathering drivel. McCourt is not allowed to talk to any
players yet. To do so would be to toss his whole deal in the ocean. Further
nobody "tells" Vlad what he must do. Is this clown Oliver Stone?

george cutshaw

team.

Yes, but Bud Selig thinks they were spending too much under Fox -- the
Brown, Dreifort and Green contracts for example.

It is clear that Selig wants to drive down spending.


Further

agua girl

LOL.... this may be true but if it is than he is grossly ineffective.
What's Georges payroll this year? 200 million?

AG

mike de leon

Sorry Oliver, it's a nice hypothesis but unlikely. The real problem is
that McCourt really can't afford the Dodgers. I read somewhere he's only
worth around 400 mil so has to lower the payroll to between 80-90 mil
especially since, IIRC, he doesn't get any of the TV rights. Even
Moreno, who owns the Angels and is worth twice what McCort is worth is
going with a payroll of around 90 mil. Until the ownership issue is
resolved Evans' hands are tied, even though he promised to use the $$ he
saved from the Brown deal to upgrade the O. I'm hoping the deal gets
thrown out and McCourt is sent packing and we get a Uberoff (sp?) type
owner.

--
"I am just a worthless liar
I am just an imbecile
I will only complicate you
Trust in me and fall as well

I will work to elevate you
Just enough to bring you down
Trust me...trust me....trust me"

Sober - Tool

george cutshaw

True. I guess he figures the Stankees/Shitbrenner are a lost cause. But
Selig has always been down on Dodger spending. He criticized initial Fox
ownership, the Sheffield trade, the Brown and Dreifort signings and the
Beltre renegotiation. If you research old news, you'll see that he put a
lot of pressure on the Dodgers at these (and possibly other) times.

ima pseudonym

OTOH, there's reason to believe that Selig is bending over backwards
to help the sale - let's not forget that the biggest single chunk of
baseball revenue (by far) comes from Fox, on the national broadcasts.
And that's not even counting the fact that a lot of teams (I think a
majority) have their local cable broadcasts through Fox also. It
would be strange for Selig to work to penalize the Dodgers, while also
wanting to keep Fox happy with baseball

Not that Selig hasn't been known to do strange, or even asinine,
things.

richard benesh

Not really - Guerrero really wants to go to Florida, but the Marlins
aren't biting. And according to what I was reading on ESPN earlier,
Guerrero
and the Orioles are 2 years and $40 million apart on a contract. There
was
mention in the article that the Dodgers are interested, but I doubt they
going to go for Guerrero's 7 year, $105 million demand.


Then consider that perhaps McCourt


I doubt it - it's far more probably that McCourt would try to limit
the
budget to run down attendance, then get Commissioner Selig and Co. on
board
that what baseball in LA really needs is a new stadium downtown
somewhere.
Then McCourt gets what he's really after...


Rich