On Friday, the Los Angeles Times reported that St. Louis Rams owner Stan Kroenke made it to the second round of bidding for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Major League Baseball's first West Coast team is up for sale following the messy divorce of owner Frank McCourt. Kroenke's interest in the team has fueled speculation about his plans to move the Rams back to Southern California. However, his odds for buying the Dodgers may be about the same as the odds of the Rams winning the Super Bowl next year.
Unlike the other eight bidders trying to woo Frank McCourt, Kroenke's efforts are complicated by the fact that he also owns an NFL team. We've covered why that might be a problem from the NFL side of things, as well as a potential solution to that problem. It also might be a problem from the MLB side of things, as noted by Maury Brown at Baseball Prospectus.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers owner Malcolm Glazer tried to buy the Dodgers in 2004, when Fox put the team on the market. Both MLB and the NFL shot that down. MLB was ultimately uncomfortable with Glazer's son running the Dodgers, something that ran counter to their preference for a controlling interest to be in the home market and the baseball operations side of things.
The NFL said no to Glazer taking a loan out against the Buccaneers.
If MLB really does prefer local ownership, they have a a number of bidders to choose from. Reports that LA's richest man, Patrick Soon-Shiong, could get into the mix as part of an ownership group adds another layer to the sale.
Brown thinks that Kroenke buying the Dodgers is ultimately unlikely based on precedent and the complications around Kroenke's effort. A side story to watch here is what happens with McCourt's land around the stadium, land that could be turned into a multi-purpose venue, capable of supporting two professional sports teams.
Kroenke's bid now has to go through an intensive vetting process by Major League Baseball. Any reservations Bud Selig's office has about the issues surrounding Kroenke's attempts to purchase the Dodgers could eliminate him from the race, especially if the goal is to have the ownership transfer completed by the end of April.
Whether Kroenke gets a legitimate shot at buying the Dodgers or not, going through the process certainly strengthens his position at the bargaining table as he looks to get a favorable stadium deal in Missouri.
Related: Here's our round up of Kroenke's efforts and the potential impact on the St. Louis Rams.
0 recs | 5 comments
So you're saying there's a chance?
Midasknight - January 30, 2012
I've heard it before...
Don’t doubt Silent Stan. Remember these quotes:
- Khan will be the next owner of the Rams.
- The Dolphins are a lock to get Fisher as their next head coach.
Stan gets what he wants. I’ll be surprised if he doesn’t pull this one off.
Da Rams! - January 30, 2012
Erm
Doesn’t have have a house in Malibu? Isn’t that in LA? So it would be local ownership, far more than he would be in St. Louis (he supposedly lives part time in Columbia, but I think he now spends most of his time elsewhere)
Yup, do a search, it made big news because he has a restraining order against the former manager of the place.
DiscoJer - January 31, 2012
"mlb likes local ownership"
First of all, MLB doesn’t care where the ownership is based so long as the next owner isn’t another bankrupting pirate like McCourt. It doesn’t matter to MLB if the next owner is an Angeleno so long as he makes the fanbase somewhat happier than McCourt did, and that his first name isn’t Frank will go far in accomplishing that. Much of the fanbase would really like his name to be Stan, because since Kronk’s made it past MLB’s censors to the second round means MLB has essentially already approved him if McCourt chooses his bid, i.e., if his bid is highest, or higher than most AND he partners with McCourt to develop the parking lot, which McCourt currently still owns, by building, among other things, an NFL stadium on it. Wrapping up its own multi-million dollar renovations, officers of the Rose Bowl have already stated it would love an NFL team to come use it temporarily, until a local permanent stadium is completed.
IF Kronke wins the Dodger lottery, the blue carpet will be rolled out on the Dodger Stadium parking lot to welcome the Rams as well, starting with the 2015 season. Brace yourself, St L.
Craig Hill - January 31, 2012
Looks like is defiant then. Because unless they the Rams fail to make the playoffs
The Rams are winning the Super Bowl
Steven M. - February 11, 2012
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