Dodgers Web doings: If Frank McCourt doesn't step up for Cliff Lee or Roy Oswalt, is it because he can't or won't?

Buddy, you got a dime?

Or maybe a cool $26 mil?

There are two clear, bright stars expected to be made available before the trading deadline -- Cliff Lee and Roy Oswalt -- and one obvious destination for either.

And at the moment, zero chance of either landing with your very own tea-leaf reading, V-energy loving, vibe-feeling Los Angeles Dodgers.

That the Dodgers don’t almost desperately need either in their rotation isn't even an issue. That the Dodgers will, or can, actually make a legitimate bid for either sadly doesn't even appear on the radar.

With Seattle's Lee, a deal probably would require several top prospects, which the Dodgers currently have a dearth of. With Houston's Oswalt, it requires serious cash, which owner Frank McCourt has been a wee bit tight with of late.

I suppose going through a mega-divorce can do that to a guy, what with having to pay the soon-to-be ex-wife with $7.6 million a year in temporary spousal support.

Yet in the end, what club followers are most concerned about is the effort made into building the best possible team on the field. Particularly one in the second-largest and most lucrative market in the country.

SI.com's Jon Heyman identifies the Dodgers as the No. 1 candidate for either Lee or Oswalt but concludes that it's not believed that the Dodgers have enough high-level prospects to nab Lee, and "Oswalt seems completely out of their reach financially."

McCourt denies that the divorce is affecting how the club is run, but then you know what they say about actions being louder than words.

In other Web doings concerning the Dodgers:

Manny Ramirez doesn't return to Boston until Friday, but already the attention has many looking past the series at the Reds and at the Red Sox.

-- The Times' Baxter Holmes talks to fans at Fenway Park, Ramirez's former Red Sox teammates and even the mayor about Manny's looming return. Safe to say, he shouldn't expect love and kisses.

-- The Riverside Press-Enterprise’s David Lassen has Dodgers Manager Joe Torre talking about how different it could be for him to enter Fenway wearing something other than a Yankees uniform.

-- Dodgers.com's Ken Gurnick offers an early Father’s Day feature with Chad Billingsley recounting the amazing health hardships his father has endured and how he pushed them aside to help his pitching career.

-- ESPNLosAngeles.com’s Tony Jackson reviews the Dodgers' on-going troubles with interleague play. They haven't had a winning record in interleague play since they went 10-8 in 2004.

-- CBSSports.com’s Scott Miller has concluded that Frank and Jamie McCourt are crazier than you thought.

From the video files:

-- Andre Ethier has filmed a funny ad for ESPN’s 3-D network that can be viewed at ESPN.com.

-- A new low in self-promotion for an otherwise good cause, actually interfering with a game in progress, Eonline.com offers Ozzy Osbourne as he induces the Dodger Stadium crowd to set a Guinness World Record for loudest and longest scream.

His new CD, coincidentally, is titled "Scream."

Poor Vin Scully introduces it as "interesting" and gamely concludes, "Anything to help."

-- Steve Dilbeck

Photo: Cliff Lee. Credit / Chris Hanewinckel / US Presswire.

Photo: Roy Oswalt. Credit / Pat Sullivan / Associated Press.

Comments

[Mark]

I was so embarrassed for Vinny on that ridiculous Ozzy Screamfest.
How low have my Dodgers gone? And what a classless thing to do to a classy guy.

[grumpy3b]

if Mr. McCourtCo does not step up he is really the coward everyone thinks he is...not stepping up will just confirm why he leveraged....errr...."bought" the Dodgers as well as why he was Selig's choice to won the team, he has not only no money but only two tiny Grape Nuts left in his sack.

[Dennis C]

There is no chance that the LAD will make a serious play for either Oswalt or Lee. For McCourt to say that the divorce is not affecting the operation of the LAD is ludicrous!

As far as the BoSox fans booing Manny this weekend, aren't these the same fans who used to boo MLB Hall of Famer Ted Williams?

The big problem with the LAD lately has not been the pitching; it has been the batters hitting with RISP. This was especially evident in the series last weekend versus the LAA.

With respect to the LAD ownership, wouldn't it be nice to be able to trade the McCourts for Arte Moreno?

[Zen]

Steve, imagine for a moment that you're a businessman, which I think is the irreducible substance of the being known as Frank McCourt.

You can:

(1) Win the West or Wild Card with a payroll of $90 million, or

(2) You can win the West or Wild Card with a $120 million payroll.

Being a businessman, you know that a profit of $30 million might be multiplied five or so times, when valuing the asset known as the Dodgers.

So, $30 million of added gross profit might fetch a higher sales price for the team of $150 million.

Are you going to toss away that kind of serious money, partly for a guy, Oswalt, that nearly electrocuted himself while tinkering under the hood of his pickup truck? Wikipedia offers this narrative of the episode, along with the pitcher's uncanny clinical assessment:

The truck's electric current flowed through Oswalt's body, and consequently the muscles in his hand tightened on the spark plug wire. Unable to let go of it, Oswalt grasped the wire for almost one minute. Oswalt then claimed his foot slipped off the truck's bumper and he was finally "thrown off." After the electric shock, Oswalt told his wife that his shoulder's condition improved and that he no longer felt any pain. According to Sports Illustrated, he reported it thus to his wife: "My truck done shocked the fire out of me, and my arm don't hurt no more."

[These Dodgers Suck!]

Dodger fans need to look in the mirror at Frank's partner in this mediocracy.

By flooding back into the Ravine since the end of May, they've inadvertently sealed the team's decision to just stand pat, tough it out ....

[Stan]

Can't or won't? Both apply. Been a big Dodger fan since a mere lad of 12 in 1950 and I can't say The Dodgers anymore. Oh sure, there is a Dodger team on the field but The Dodgers use to mean not only the field team but a first rate organization. You know, like The Lakers, The Celtics, The Yankees. Frankie and the Bride of Frankie have put the Dodgers in a class comparable to a mini-mall mom & pop store.

[Miguel]

This is not going to happen. The team you see now is the team that will be there at the end of the season. This owner just wants to make a profit, not win championships.

[Jason]

When's Plaschke going to incessantly write articles about how, with what McCourt charges the fans, he owes it to us to get a legitimate frontline starter? We as fans are relying on the press strongly to pressure ownership and relay the frustrations we have. Plaschke is the most identifiable member of the paper of record for LA and we need him to be more present in Dodger press conferences, especially now that the Laker season has concluded.

[Jason]

and yes, Dilbeck...I'm directly asking you. This isn't a rhetorical question meant to allow venting.

[Steve Dilbeck]

Jason: You want to know what Bill thinks, you need to e-mail Bill. His focus has understandably been on the Lakers. I imagine he'll take a few much-deserved days off and then turn his attention more to the Dodgers.