So much for Frank McCourt's promise to MLB that all up front TV money would go to team

Remember that amazing Frank McCourt news conference in New York, the one he conducted after meeting with Major League Baseball executives? The one where he accused Commissioner Bud Selig of being un-American?

It was then in a rather curious move that McCourt first publicly pledged that all the money he would receive up front from the Fox television deal would go directly to the team and not to settle his divorce or be used for personal matters.

This was completely bogus on the surface, since any money he spent on the settlement had to come from the Dodgers one way or another, the team his only source of income.

But he said it anyway. At the time, he was talking about receiving approximately $300 million up front.

"The $300 million I made clear to baseball today, that the entirety of the $300 million is going directly into the Dodgers as equity," McCourt said April 27th. "None of those dollars is being used in any personal way. I would be happy to make that commitment in writing."

Well, he did make a commitment in writing Friday in his "divorce settlement," though the money to be loaned by Fox up front had somehow mushroomed to $385 million.

And per the divorce agreement, out of that $385 million: $5 million would go each to Frank and Jamie McCourt to cover attorneys’ fees (hey, they stayed up to 3 a.m. Friday); each would get $5 million to do with as they please (down payment on another villa!); $23.5 million would repay Frank for the personal loan he acquired to make payroll (think that $30 mil Fox already loaned him); $80 million will be used to pay off debt (well, a little of it); and $50 million will be placed into an account subject to the court’s orders (no, not for a left fielder, it’s just-in-case money).

Grand total: $173.5 million.

Otherwise, not a cent of the TV money will be for personal use! Other than that $173.5 million.

I don’t know, other than that, I’m sure MLB is convinced Frank is reformed, has learned all those valuable lessons and will always put the Dodgers first. I mean, why wouldn’t they take Frank at his word?

-- Steve Dilbeck

Photo: Dodgers owner Frank McCourt appears on Bloomberg Television during an interview in New York on April 28. Credit: Ramin Talaie / Bloomberg

Comments

[Jeff570]

Steve, with all due respect, Judge Scott Gordon could have ruled today whether or not The Dodgers are community property. Even if Judge Gordon wanted to have a separate court date for this, why do we have to wait until 8/4/11? Why could Judge Gordon not scheduled this decision for next week? I know. I know. Judges have calanders and all. However I see this as a power and control issue on the part of Judge Gordon, stretching this out over the summer. Make the decision now that The Dodgers are community property and this charade comes to an end. Now Bud Selig needs to say next week he won't let the Fox Contract be approved until Judge Gordon rules on whether or not The Dodgers are community property or not. And on we go.

[Theodore Jackson]

Steve-

Well stated....I love calling a spade a spade.

Jeff570..equally thought provoking and realistic.

It has been said here, so many times...please Mr. and Ms. McCourt..GO AWAY!

[campc4]

Stadium looks pretty empty tonite, please keep up the boycott. Every ticket you buy is an endorsement of Frank McCourt! I know it is hard, but try not to go to games. Find something else to spend your money on, then once Frank is gone we can all go back and enjoy OUR Dodgers again!

[Tony F.]

Bud Selig has an opportunity to ammend a bad prior decision. He did not allow this flea-bag to buy the Red Sox, but allowed him to by the Dodgers. I truly hope that he takes this unique opportunity to make McFlea disappear from Los Angeles. Until that happens, I will remain far away from Chavez Ravine........

[OldBrooklynFan]

Oh I see, only & 212 million for the team, not $ 300 million. I guess he was trying to finagle MLB to get the approval for the contract.

[WildWilli]

Here's hoping that this agreement can finally bring this to a resolution and Frank can get own with the business of running the Dodgers.

[Tony F.]

I can't help but feel that the Dodgers poor play this season is partially a result of the McCourts financial and divorce circus.......

[LoveYaVin]

Frank McCourt lying, cheating and stealing barely qualifies as news these days. But Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Scott Gordon stating that the Fox contract "is in the best interests of the Los Angeles Dodgers and should be consummated immediately" is unsettling. Scary to find this ignorance or poor judgment presiding over a court of law.

["I'M NOT A CROOK"]

Wonder what the MLB investigation into the Dodgers finances will reveal?
What a mess.
McDisaster.

[16blows]

To borrow from a famous 1967 anti-smoking ('the') public service announcement, like Bill?... like Frank?... think about it.

"the entirety of the $300 million is going directly into the Dodgers as equity," McCourt said April 27th.

- " it depends on what the meaning of 'is'... is, (Steve) " - Bill Clinton 1998

"None of those dollars is being used in any personal way."

- ditto...

"I would be happy to make that commitment in writing."

- disappearing (red) ink...

[HI Dodger Fan]

we should hope he continues to do this. on the big assumption that MLB approves the FOX deal, if Frank starts to act responsibly, MLB will not have grounds to take the team away. But if he gets the deal, and continues to mis-manage the Dodgers to the brink of bankruptcy, then MLB will then be completely justified in taking the team away. in other words, we have to endure more of this to get what we want, Frank (and Ned and Donnie (really, why is Navaroo starting again?)) out of LA.

[Labeldude]

Judge Gordon's obviously a Giants fan.

[Jmag1011]

Good thing I bought a 65" tv and skipped on dodger & laker games this year but to further my end end of the boycott I no longer watch them on tv =( .. McCourt go away u prick

[Arthur Marx]

Yeah, let's do all we can to get the McCourts out of town, and bring back Fox/NewsCorp to own and run the team.

We all remember what a great job Chase Carey and Peter Chernin did, don't we?

[rogerdodger913]

i guess the only reason to drag this sucker out until aug. 4th is so that the dodgers won't have any chance at acquiring anybody worthwhile at the july 30th deadline...why carry this charade any longer? i don't want to sound impatient here, however it's my belief that anyone who has any care or love for this team has run out of patience by now...frank, it really is time for you to go...

[confused dodger fan]

Damn, I wish the world would have ended on May 21st! Damn you pastor!! and rot in hell McCourt!!

[Wes]

McDork is a lying sack of shinola. All of the scenarios of this so called agreement are amazing in themselves and could have been created by Zero Mostel's character in The Producers. The ones that really irk me and especially after reading Jamie's statement after the agreement are that she gets to keep 7 out of 8 houses and will be shielded from tax liability and gets $5 million on top of her $100 million. What the $100 mill wasn't enough so she needed the $5 million kicker to sweeten the deal. Jeez, $5mill might have been able to keep Russell Martin on the team.

Now, Frankenweenie and Screaming Mimi, if you really cared about the team and your sons don't you think you might have sold off a few of those houses by now to ease the debt load?!!! No, I guess that would make too much sense. These two have pilfered and plundered a city treasure are now buying new deck chairs for the Titantic. Keep up the boycott and ride these two out of town on a rail. But it make first class because these two have style...

[Fan]

The damage is done Mccourt's. If you think the fans are going to except you, you better think again. You have turned off so many fans it would take years for you to recover.

[Abort McCourt]

Jeff570, you're right. Ideally, Judge Gordon would make his decision on community property before Selig has to make a decision on the Fox deal. A ruling in favor if Jamie would make the Fox deal a moot point. A lawsuit by McCourt would paralyze the front office's ability to make personnel transactions, and the Dodgers could see players like Kemp and Kershaw sail off to greener pastures.
http://abortmccourt.blogspot.com/

[Native Angeleno]

Fortunately, jeff570 is not right. The Aug 4 court date has nothing to do with the June 30 payroll date, which supercedes Aug 4's importance.

F***k is counting on MLB approving the Fox deal so he can make payroll. But Bud's not going to. June 30: End of the McCourt Disaster. By Aug 4 the damn judge will decide who owned what, Frank 100% (not likely) or Jamie 50%. If the latter, Jamie's asked the court to sell the team in an auction. THAT will be important. Because on June 30, MLB is going to pay the bills Frank defaults on, then take over the team, then start accepting bids for a real owner to buy it. That may bring us up to Aug 4, when Jamie's plea for the court to auction the team would kick in IF the judge grants her half of it, taking the sale out of the control of Bud and into the control of Scott, who would grant the team to the highest bidder, and not another of Bud's chosen cheapskates.

So it behooves all Dodgerkind to hold your nose and pull for Jamie Aug 4. If she gets 50%, her request for court auction would supercede MLB's sale, and New Owner will have Deep Pockets out of the control of MLB.

Bud then has the legal ability to reject the high bidder, but the circumstances and the Rangers' precedent last year in a near-exact duplicate situation will force him to accept the deep-pockets winner to bring the fans back, which is his biggest concern regarding the Dodgers. He may insist a crony of his be added to the ownership team, to keep even a small toe in the pool, but if Peter O'Malley, the first bigwig to publicly denounce McCourt, joins the winning bidder as a kind of executive producer, that may be enough to satisfy Bud AND LA the New Owners are to be trusted, and the fans will return, as if swallows to Capistrano in March.

If Peter is not part of the new team, and Bud insists on his own skunky-type as jr partner, even that may not last. It took all of 7 months after the auction of the Rangers last year for winning bidder Nolan Ryan to jettison Bud's dumb crony, in a buy-out/throw-out.

[Frank got over on everyone]

WOW! Just think...If Frank retains ownership, he can sale "just the stadium" to NFL investers and stipulate a stadium lease agreement for the Dodgers...

Frank will retain the Dodgers and the parking lot and NFL finally gets their L.A. franchise...

OH! And I'm certain FOX will have an inside track to the NFL cable rights...

Maybe Frank had a master plan all along...

[evan]

@Native Angelino
Sorry but you are wrong...The judge does not have the authority to sell the dodgers to the highest bidder. It just doesn't work like that. MLB retains all rights and "last words" on who gets to belong to the extremely exclusive club of MLB Team Owners. If anything, the judge would turn the team over to MLB to do with it what they see fit; MLB will write whatever checks necessary but make no mistake about it, IT WILL BE THEIR TEAM. And they (MLB) will cut the McCourts out of the picture faster than you can say "Play Ball".

[BoycottMaster]

Thanks,Steve.Because of your excellent work,I don't have to get confused by the other media posers. This "Dodger thoughts" guy came on the radio yesterday and said "now the ball is in the Selig's court,blah blah". IMHO,that's exactly what Frank is trying to make us believe.All Selig needs to do is to wait until June 30th and see if Frank can make the payroll. Frank is obviously trying to fool Selig so he will have the better case against Selig and I don't think Selig and his lawyers are that stupid.