Dodgers bankruptcy not about hot dog stands, creditors say

The U.S. Bankruptcy Court is not the proper venue to address concession lines at Dodger Stadium, the committee representing creditors in the Dodgers bankruptcy case said Tuesday.

The committee and the Dodgers each filed formal opposition to the proposal for a separate committee to represent the interests of season-ticket holders. The court will consider the proposal on Oct. 25.

In their motion, the ticket holders said they deserved a say in the case in part because the value of season tickets could be affected by how the Dodgers get out of bankruptcy -- a television rights auction, a sale of the team or otherwise -- and how the proceeds are invested.

According to that filing, the tickets might already have been devalued because of "mismanagement such as the closure of needed concession stands and operation of understaffed and inefficient concession stands remaining that causes ticket holders to miss one or more innings while standing in insufferable lines for food."

Angels -- not Dodgers -- close to new TV deal with Fox?

As Dodgers owner Frank McCourt seeks the intervention of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court to pursue a new television contract for his team, the Angels could be nearing a lucrative deal of their own with Fox Sports.

And, with the Texas Rangers one victory away from their second consecutive World Series, the Angels could be close to securing billions of dollars to use in fighting back against their American League West rivals.

In a court filing this week on behalf of Major League Baseball, Los Angeles sports media consultant Ed Desser said the Dodgers would be unlikely to succeed in launching a cable channel of their own, in part because they would not have "any other significant sports team" to join them. He noted that the Lakers are launching two channels of their own, the Pac-12 Conference is launching another for UCLA and USC, and the Kings and Clippers are bound to Fox.

"The Los Angeles Angels are expected to close a new transaction," Desser said in the filing.

Desser declined to elaborate when reached by telephone, and spokesmen for both Fox and the Angels declined to comment.

However, Fox and the Angels have had dialogue about a new deal for an extended period of time, according to parties familiar with the conversations but not authorized to discuss them. No deal is imminent, the parties said.

With Fox losing the Lakers and potentially losing the Dodgers, the Angels have the leverage to command a deal in excess of the 20-year, $1.6-billion contract to which Fox and the Rangers agreed last year.

That deal averages $80 million per year. The Angels' current contract with Fox, which extends through the 2015 season, averages $50 million per year.

The Angels also would be likely to get an ownership share in Fox Sports West. The Rangers' new deal does not include an ownership stake in its Fox Sports affiliate.

In the proposed Dodgers' contract rejected by Commissioner Bud Selig, the team would have gotten an ownership share in Prime Ticket as well as average annual rights fees in excess of what the Rangers got. McCourt valued the entire deal -- the annual rights fees and the ownership share in Prime Ticket -- at $3 billion.

McCourt now has asked the Bankruptcy Court to let him auction the Dodgers' television rights, with MLB and Fox in opposition. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Kevin Gross is scheduled to consider the issue -- as well as the league's request that he order the sale of the Dodgers -- during a four-day hearing set to start Oct. 31.

Desser, the founding president of NBA TV and former chief television negotiator for the NBA, could be an expert witness for MLB. In his filing, he argued that the Dodgers would be best served by waiting to sell their television rights rather than auctioning them off at this time and dismissed the Dodgers' claims that the market might be at its peak now.

"Based on industry trends, I believe [the Dodgers] might be able to get 10[%]-20% more for the media rights if they wait a year or two," Desser said.

Desser said he led negotiations for the Lakers for their new channels with Time Warner Cable. Although the Dodgers said interested bidders for their rights could include Charter, Dish Network and DirecTV, Desser said that none of those entities showed interest in the Lakers and that the bidders for the Dodgers likely would be limited to Fox and Time Warner.

He also said the specter of litigation could "chill" the bidding, noting that Fox already has sued the Dodgers for breaching their current contract. He also said potential bidders would consider "team performance, attendance, public sentiment and TV ratings trends" in deciding how much to offer the Dodgers.

"Now is not the time to sell the media rights, when their value will be depressed by the current poor condition of the club," Desser said.

In a filing last week, the Dodgers said the condition of the club was strong, citing in part stadium renovations and attendance increases through 2008 and four playoff appearances in McCourt's first six years of management.

"Although the Dodgers did not make the playoffs in 2011, the team's 82-79 record was an improvement over 2010," the filing read. "The current roster includes numerous players from the team's farm system, including players in contention for both the National League Most Valuable Player award and the National League Cy Young award."

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Attorneys get testy in sparring at Dodgers' bankruptcy hearing

On the surface, the question for U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Kevin Gross on Wednesday appeared fairly straightforward. As the Dodgers ask to sell their television rights to finance their exit from bankruptcy, do they have to reveal their template for a television contract?

Not yet, attorneys for the Dodgers argued. Right away, attorneys for Major League Baseball argued.

Gross ruled for the Dodgers, but not before a lengthy argument that hinted at the bitter fight awaiting Commissioner Bud Selig and Dodgers owner Frank McCourt when both men testify in Gross' courtroom. That testimony will come during a four-day hearing critical to McCourt's hope of retaining the Dodgers. The hearing is set to start Oct. 31.

Sidney Levinson, an attorney representing the Dodgers, asked why MLB was so anxious to get a copy of the broadcast contract template when Selig already has said he would reject any television deal under which McCourt would remain the Dodgers' owner.

Glenn Kurtz, an attorney representing MLB, said Selig premised his decision in part because such a sale would violate league rules and could subject the Dodgers to what Fox Sports has called "massive" damages. Kurtz also asked how the Dodgers could ask the court for permission to sell their television rights if they couldn't say exactly how they wanted the sale to proceed.

Levinson said the Dodgers first wanted to seek a court ruling that they need not honor provisions in the current television contract that grant Fox rights of first negotiation and first refusal. At that, Fox attorney Paul Laurin jumped in and said the Dodgers were "holding ... Fox's rights as hostage" in McCourt's fight with Selig.

MLB withdraws bid to disqualify Dodgers attorneys [UPDATED]

Major League Baseball on Monday withdrew its motion to disqualify the attorneys representing the Dodgers in the team's bankruptcy case, five days after the judge overseeing the case said he "didn't think very highly" of the motion.

MLB had argued that the attorneys were inevitably conflicted between what the league said were the divergent interests of the Dodgers and of owner Frank McCourt. In response, the Dodgers called the MLB move a "blatant tactical maneuver" designed to cripple the team on the verge of a key hearing and another example of the league's "ongoing public smear campaign" against McCourt.

On Monday, the league said it withdrew its motion "at the suggestion of the Court appointed mediator."

[UPDATED: An earlier version of this post incorrectly said the league reserved the right to file a similar motion at a later date. The league did not reserve that right and cannot again seek to disqualify the attorneys.]

Attorneys for MLB and the Dodgers will participate in a Wednesday hearing designed in part to set ground rules for the key hearing scheduled to start Oct. 31. One of the topics that could be discussed on Wednesday: What documents is McCourt entitled to get from Fox Sports?

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Kevin Gross ruled last week that McCourt and his attorneys are not entitled to documents from MLB related to the television contracts of other teams. The Dodgers have not publicly disclosed what documents they are seeking from Fox, but the information on Fox contracts with other teams could help -- if, that is, McCourt and his attorneys are allowed to get it.

-- Bill Shaikin

Judge to Dodgers: It's you vs. MLB, keep other teams out of it [UPDATED]

Frank McCourt has argued for months that he is the victim of a double standard. The Dodgers would not be in financial trouble, McCourt has claimed, if he and his team were treated by Commissioner Bud Selig in the same way as other owners and other teams.

On Friday, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Kevin Gross formally denied McCourt and his attorneys evidence they had argued would be critical in proving their case. As he suggested he would, Gross refused the Dodgers permission to obtain documents relating to the other 29 major league teams.

"The Court's focus is and shall remain on LAD and Mr. McCourt, on the one hand, and the Commissioner on the other," Gross wrote in his ruling, using "LAD" to refer to the Dodgers. "The discovery LAD seeks would improperly shift the spotlight to the other 29 teams."

McCourt has argued Selig forced the Dodgers into bankruptcy by rejecting a proposed television contract with Fox Sports, claiming the contract was structured similarly to others approved by the commissioner.

"The Commissioner's relationship with LAD, including his refusal to approve the media rights sale, is what is at issue," Gross wrote, "not what 29 other teams have and/or have not done and why the Commissioner approved or rejected their requests.

"LAD either breached or didn't breach the Baseball Agreements--the actions of other teams do not bear upon the issue."

Judge signals Dodgers can't get documents about other teams

The Dodgers failed again on Wednesday to persuade U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Kevin Gross that they needed documents about other Major League Baseball teams.

"To open this up at this point to all of baseball, to the other 29 teams, would be more burdensome than is appropriate," Gross said, "and perhaps not even relevant to the issue of bad faith."

Gross said he would issue a formal ruling in a day or two but said he did not imagine he would reverse his previous order denying the Dodgers access to confidential financial data involving other teams.

"What I am likely to do is say, 'I am not going to permit the discovery,' " Gross said.

Dodgers owner Frank McCourt has said for months that he has been held to a double standard by Commissioner Bud Selig, most notably by the rejection of a proposed television contract. Dodgers attorney Sid Levinson said the team should be entitled to see what factors Selig used in approving or rejecting the contracts of other teams in order for the court to determine whether the commissioner treated McCourt in good faith.

"What was the commissioner's agenda?" Levinson said.

MLB calls Dodgers' document demands "totally irrelevant"

Major League Baseball asked a federal bankruptcy judge to uphold a ruling that restricts the documents to which the Dodgers are entitled, arguing Tuesday that attorneys for team owner Frank McCourt are seeking "totally irrelevant" materials.

If U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Kevin Gross does not affirm his original ruling, the league argued, the bankruptcy proceedings would "likely drag on into the 2012 baseball season, harming the Dodgers."

Gross has set a hearing Wednesday, at which he will hear the Dodgers' request that he reconsider his order denying the team "discovery into or of other baseball clubs."

The Dodgers said Monday that they need access to such information to make their case that Commissioner Bud Selig has treated McCourt differently than he has treated other owners--in their words, that Selig is "using a different strike zone" for McCourt.

In its response Tuesday, the league included a copy of Rule 9.02 of the Official Baseball Rules: "Any umpire's decision which involves judgment ... is final."

The league reminded Gross that McCourt, like all owners, has signed an agreement deferring to Selig's judgment. The MLB attorneys also claimed that the Dodgers' attorneys had botched their strike-zone metaphor.

"Pitchers, managers and owners often believe that one pitcher got a better call than another on a similar pitch, but they are not allowed to litigate that decision," the MLB filing read. "As all baseball fans know, an umpire's judgment calls cannot be challenged."

MLB move 'gutsy' but not sure winner, bankruptcy attorney says

Major League Baseball moved decisively on Friday toward an end game with Dodgers owner Frank McCourt, asking a federal bankruptcy judge to order the team sold.

"I think it's a gutsy move," said Thomas Salerno, the lead attorney for the NHL's Phoenix Coyotes during that team's bankruptcy. "They have drawn a line in the sand."

The core issue in the Coyotes' bankruptcy is the same as in the Dodgers' case: Would a Bankruptcy Court override league rules?

The Coyotes asked a judge to approve a sale to a bidder who wanted to move the team from Arizona to Canada. The NHL asked the judge to deny the sale, citing its interest in keeping the team in Arizona and ultimately its power over where its teams play.

The judge sided with the NHL, and with the league agreements to which the Coyotes had endorsed.

"At the end of the day, the judge said, 'You have to live by those agreements,' " Salerno said.

Trustee urges judge to tear up billings by lawyers for Dodgers [UPDATED]

The law firms representing the Dodgers in their bankruptcy case should be denied payment of $352,742 in bills, according to court papers filed Thursday.

The federal trustee assigned to the case asked U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Kevin Gross to deny what amounts to 21% of the initial $1.66 million in bills submitted by the firms, Dewey & LeBoeuf of Los Angeles and Young, Conaway, Stargatt & Taylor of Delaware.

The trustee argued that the firms should not be paid for efforts to keep confidential the fees associated with Dodgers owner Frank McCourt's initial financing proposal and should not be paid for efforts to pursue that loan even after Major League Baseball countered by offering an unsecured loan.

"It should have been apparent to Debtors' highly experienced and highly qualified bankruptcy counsel" that the efforts on both fronts were not necessary and did not benefit the Dodgers and thus were "not compensable," according to the filing.

[UPDATED, 3:55 p.m.: Dodgers spokeswoman Lyndsey Estin said the law firms would challenge the trustee's request.

"Their fees are completely consistent with appropriate billing practices, and they expect that 100% of the fees they have requested  will be allowed," Estin said.]

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Dodgers' lead spokesman reportedly leaving for Diamondbacks [Updated]

Josh Rawitch, the Dodgers' chief spokesman, is leaving at the end of this season to take a similar post with the Arizona Diamondbacks, sources familiar with the matter said Monday.

[Update: Rawitch confirmed his departure, saying he was approached by the Diamondbacks and that the turmoil surrounding the Dodgers’ ownership this season was not a factor in his decision.  In an e-mail sent to Dodgers employees, owner Frank McCourt said “we are very happy” for Rawitch and had “begun working to find his replacement.”]

 The disclosure came only a few hours before the Dodgers were to open a three-game series with Arizona at Dodger Stadium. Arizona is in first place in the National League West.

Rawitch is the Dodgers' vice president of communications, and he has accepted the job of senior vice president of communications with the Diamondbacks.

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