Rumors for legal
Barry Bonds sentenced
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Today Barry Bonds, the MLB home run leader was sentenced to two years of probation for obstructing a U.S. probe of steroid use in professional sports. Almost forgot, he also received 30 days of mansion arrest (house arrest in his 15,00 square foot Beverly Hills house).
The prosecution had asked the judge to sentence Bonds to 15 months in prison while the US probation department had recommended no jail time.
Bonds and his team of attorney’s are appealing the ruling.
A jury convicted Bonds in April of purposely answering questions about steroids with rambling responses in an attempt to mislead a grand jury.
Bonds’ trial jury failed to reach a verdict on three other charges accusing Bonds of lying when he denied taking performance-enhancing drugs and when he denied receiving injections from someone other than his doctor.
Image taken by kevinrushforth and used under the Creative Commons License Agreement.
Is the end of the McCourt era near?
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This past season, the drama off the field at Chavez Ravine engulfed what happened on the diamond. Baseball fans were more concerned about divorce proceedings than the team’s record. Frank McCourt over the season, has been able to do something that no losing Dodger team has been able to do in the history of the franchise and that’s keep fans away from Dodger stadium.
McCourt took the Dodgers into Bankruptcy protection and has been fighting the Commissioner Bud Selig and his ex-wife, Jamie McCourt for control of the team. McCourt entered Bankruptcy with the hopes of being able to sell the TV rights and receive an upfront lump of cash to pay off debtors and keep the team afloat.
Last week, he finally reached an agreement with his ex-wife Jamie McCourt that would pay her $130mm in exchange for her share of the Dodgers.
But that was just the battle leading up to the war when he was set to square off against MLB next week in court. McCourt has broken all of the “Boys code” among baseball owners as he has been airing the dirty laundry of MLB. The court hearing was going to focus on whether McCourt could sell the TV rights over the objection of FOX and MLB with the commissioner asking the court to force McCourt to sell the Dodgers. MLB also accused McCourt of taking $190 million from the Dodgers for personal use.
Today, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Kevin Gross issued an order saying that those hearings will now take place from Nov. 29 to Dec. 2. Speculation immediately started to fly about a possible settlement as reports surfaced of McCourt being in New York yesterday, which also happens to be where MLB headquarters is located. Bill Shaikin of the LA Times later confirmed the rumors that McCourt and MLB did meet on Tuesday and discussed a possible settlement.
Settlement talks, though only at the infant stage could mean that McCourt realizes that he won’t win the court hearing in November or it could mean that he thinks Selig will overpay him to leave baseball.
Many people in baseball believe the Dodgers could be sold for $1 billion to $1.5 billion.
No matter what happens in the upcoming weeks, the McCourt era in Los Angeles may be coming to a close.
Barry Bonds conviction upheld by federal judge
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The obstruction of justice conviction of Barry Bonds was upheld by federal judge, Susan Illston, on Friday so no new trial or an acquittal will take place, according to Ronald Blum of the Associated Press.
Bonds was convicted of giving an evasive reply to a grand jury while under oath when asked whether he received drugs that required a syringe.
“Viewed in the light most favorable to the government, the record supports a finding, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the question was material to the grand jury’s investigation of BALCO and Greg Anderson for unlawfully distributing performance enhancing drugs, and that defendant endeavored to obstruct the grand jury by not answering it when it was first asked,” Illston wrote. “The conviction can be upheld if (the) defendant endeavored to obstruct justice, even if he did not succeed.”
Blum adds that Bonds is likely going to appeal Illston’s decision to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
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Major League Baseball rejects the Dodgers-Fox deal
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According to Bill Shakin of the Los Angeles Times, Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig, has rejected the proposed television contract between the Dodgers and FOX.
This decision invalidates the divorce settlement between Frank McCourt and Jamie McCourt. Selig rejected the contract on the first business day after the McCourts announced a settlement contingent upon approval of that contract adds Shakin.
If McCourt cannot make the Dodgers’ June 30 payroll, Selig could seize the team and put it up for sale. McCourt said Friday he could meet that payroll, but a person familiar with his finances said he had “no chance” without the television money says Shakin.
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Frank McCourt may not be able to make June 30th payroll
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As an owner of a sports team, one would expect the owner to have millions of dollars sitting in an account and having no issues with making payroll, unless your name is Frank McCourt and you own the Dodgers. Over the last few months, with pay the man/ pay days at the 15th and 30th (or 31st) it has been a guessing game as to if Frank McCourt would be able to make payroll.
McCourt was able to secure funds to help make May 31st payroll by taking cash advances on payments that he was not scheduled to receive until later this season.
According to Bill Shaikin of the LA Times, McCourt expects to make payroll tomorrow which totals about $10mm, but has “no chance” of making the 30th payroll as the amount triples to $30mm. The amount triples thanks to our favorite steroid user Manny Ramirez and his $8mm deferred payment. If McCourt misses payroll, MLB would seize control of the team and would eventually sell the team.
Frank and his ex-wife/ half owner of the Dodgers, Jamie McCourt, held settlement talks for over nine hours on Monday. It appears the sides may be working towards a deal but the details are unknown. When Shaikin caught up with Jamie’s attorney Dennis Wasser, he said “Negotiations continuing. Stay tuned.”
If the two sides do not reach a deal, then on June 22nd both sides will be in court where Frank filed paperwork asking the judge to rule that Jamie has no say in a TV deal agreement, while Jamie wants the court to force Frank to sell the team.
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Pitchers notes: Matusz, Lyles and Hernandez
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Here are a few notes regarding some Major League pitchers:
– Brian Matusz didn’t have a good outing on Sunday against the Rays. Rays’ manager, Joe Maddon, believes there’s something wrong with the left hander reports Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun.
“I think there may be something not quite right with Matusz,” Maddon said. “I’m certain he’s not feeling 100 percent.”
– Astros starter Jordan Lyles will remain in the team’s rotation once Wandy Rodriguez is activated from the Disabled List reports Zachary Levine of the Houston Chronicle.
The team will probably move Aneury Rodriguez to the bullpen and option Jeff Fulchino to Triple-A to make room for Rodriguez on the roster.
– Livan Hernandez is target of a federal money-laundering investigation according to Nathan Fenno of the Washington Times. Hernandez is suspected of being a “straw buyer” for Angel Ayala-Vazquez, the leader of one of the most powerful drug trafficking organization in Puerto Rico.
A “straw buyer” purchases items for others in their own name, allowing the proceeds from illegal activities such as drug trafficking to be hidden.
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Bryan Stow’s family files lawsuit against Dodgers
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For Frank McCourt, when it rains it pours, and it’s pouring now. Today, the family of Bryan Stow, filed a lawsuit against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The lawsuit alleges that poor security at the stadium contributed to the brutal attack the night of the Dodgers home opener. According to the lawsuit, Bryan Stow was continuously threatened during the game and immediately following the end of the game, but the security staff failed to take any action. The suit seeks unspecified damages to cover Stow’s future medical care and as compensation for the economic damages to Stow and his two children.
“It’s fairly simple. The Dodgers have shown a total disregard for public safety,” Stow family attorney Thomas Girardi told ESPN. “They’ve gotten rid of security people. They’ve had all these incidents at their games, more than other teams. There’s also a known gang presence. What did they think was going to happen?”
The lawsuit also alleges that it took 10 to 15 minutes for security to respond after the beating.
New security measures were implemented at Dodger Stadium in response to the attack, including more police officers at the stadium which will be the main focus point of the lawsuit. Frank McCourt is reactive not proactive which is why he will probably lose the lawsuit.
The family also insists on repaying as much of the money that has been raised for the Bryan Stow Fund since the attack except for a scholarship for Stow’s children that was donated by Giants slugger Barry Bonds because it “means so much to them.”
Information from ESPN.com was used in this article.
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Indians OF Shin-Soo Choo arrested for DUI
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Cleveland Indians outfielder Shin-Soo Choo was arrested Monday morning for driving under the influence in Sheffield Lake, Paul Hoynes of The Plain Dealer reports.
GM Chris Antonetti issued this statement, “We are aware of the incident with Shin-Soo Choo and have spoken to him about it. The Indians organization takes these issues very seriously and we are disappointed in the matter. We will continue to monitor the situation and we will not have any further comment at this time.”
Choo is the second Indian’s player to be arrested for a DUI this year. Austin Kearns was arrested in February outside of Lexington, Kentucky.
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Selig will not change Barry Bonds records
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All-time home run king and single season home run leader Barry Bonds will not have his records changed in the Major League Baseball history books, according to commissioner Bud Selig (via The Associate Press).
“In life there’s always got to be pragmatism,” Selig said during a meeting Thursday with The Associated Press Sports Editors. “I think that anybody who understands the sport understand exactly why.”
Bonds currently holds the career home run record with 762 and a single season mark of 73 home runs. He was convicted last week on a single count of obstruction of justice.
Major League Baseball will take over the Dodgers financial operations
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According to Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times, baseball commisioner, Bud Selig, is announced that Major League Baseball will take over the Dodgers financial operations.
Comissioner Bud Selig released the following statement (Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times). “I have taken this action because of my deep concerns regarding the finances and operations of the Dodgers and to protect the best interests of the Club, its great fans and all of Major League Baseball.”
Last week, we learned that team owner Frank McCourt took a loan from FOX of $30mm to cover the Dodgers’ payroll obligations as well as expenses (extra police, hot dogs you know those kind of things) into next month.
Selig recently stopped McCourt from borrowing $200 million from FOX which Tony Jackson of ESPNLosAngeles.com says would put more pressure on Frank McCourt to sell the team. McCourt wanted to use the Dodgers’ cable television rights as collateral, extending the team’s current contract with FOX by as many as four years if he did not repay the loan.
Steve Sugerman, the spokesman for McCourt, declined to confirm the deal or discuss its terms. “The team is meeting its financial obligations as it always has,” Sugerman said, “and will continue to do so.”
To make matters worse, Frank was sued by the Boston law firm that drafted the since-invalidated property agreement that McCourt had relied upon to establish his sole ownership of the Dodgers. No further details are known at this time of the lawsuit.
