Los Angeles Dodgers

Baseball Great Steve Garvey Bidding For LA Dodgers

Filed under: Sports

Former Los Angeles Dodger first baseman Steve Garvey says he has put together an investment group interested in buying his former team, the Los Angeles Times reported.

The future of the Dodgers has been thrown into doubt since a judge threw out a post-nuptial agreement between Frank and Jamie McCourt that would have given Frank McCourt sole ownership of the Dodgers. That makes the former Mrs. McCourt half-owner of the team.

Garvey, who recently fell short of election to the Baseball Hall of Fame, did not disclose how much his group has offered for the team, or whether it would have a controlling interest, according to the report. He said he had "three to five" investors from the business and entertainment fields, but did not identify them.

Frank McCourt has said that he doesn't want to sell the team. But there is public pressure building because of the disarray the team has been in during the last two seasons. The divorce proceedings were a major distraction to running the ball club, and contributed to manager Joe Torre retiring from the job after last season.

Garvey said he would serve as the general managing partner if the bid were successful. "I think I know what it takes to put a winner on the field," he said, according to the report.

Frank McCourt's spokesman, Steve Sugerman, said McCourt wants to keep the team within his family.

"There are some great treasures out there that people would love to buy, the Dodgers among them. But, like the Mona Lisa and the Pacific Ocean, the Dodgers aren't for sale," Sugerman said, according to the report.

Dallas Mavericks owner owner Mark Cuban said a year ago that he might be interested in buying the Dodgers, having ben rebuffed in his attempts to buy the Chicago Cubs.

Tags: Frank McCourt, Jamie McCourt, Los Angeles Dodgers, Mark Cuban, Steve Garvey

Kirk Gibson's Artifacts Bring in $1.19 Million at Auction

by Lisa Palladino (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Charity, Sports

Kirk Gibson's Artifacts Bring in $1.9 Million at Auction

AP reported that a father-son sports collectors team from Santa Barbara bought the bat that Kirk Gibson used for his historic home run in the 1988 World Series for $575,912.40 on November 14 in SCP Auctions' October/November auction, and also took home the four other Gibson artifacts on sale. The bid for Gibson's bat is the second-highest amount paid for a game-used bat, behind only Babe Ruth's signed bat used for the first home run at Yankee Stadium, which SCP sold in 2004 for $1.265 million.

Chad and Doug Dreier of the Dreier Group paid $1.19 million for the five items, which included Gibson's home run bat, his game-worn Los Angeles Dodgers jersey ($303,277.20), batting helmet ($153,388.80), NL Most Valuable Player Award ($110,293.20), and World Series trophy ($45,578.40). Proceeds from the sale of the World Series trophy and MVP award will benefit the Kirk Gibson Foundation to continue Gibson's support of Michigan State University athletic programs and to help fund his partial scholarship programs at Clarkston (Michigan) H.S. and Waterford (Michigan) H.S., in honor of his parents, who were educators at those schools.

Other items that found new homes at the auction are a 1934 Babe Ruth professional-model bat used by Ruth to hit career home run No. 702 ($137,865.60), a Ty Cobb H&B side-written professional model game-used bat ($75,330), and a 1953 Mickey Mantle New York Yankees game-worn, autographed road jersey ($62,256).

Gallery: Kirk Gibson's Artifacts Bring in $1.19 Million at Auction

Tags: auction, baseball, bat, charity, Dodgers, Kirk Gibson, Los Angeles Dodgers, sports

Pitcher Ted Lilly Lists Chicago Home

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Estates, Celebrity Shopping, Sports

Last month we learned that Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Ted Lilly was putting his Chicago home up for market. Now, Housing Watch led us to the listing. Lilly, who used to play for the Cubs is yet another sports star who may end up losing money on a home he bought in a town he no longer plays for; Housing Watch reports that Lilly bought the home in 2006 for $2.15 million bit it is listed for $2.1 million with Mike Lavorato of d'Aprile Realty.

The 5,500-square-foot Chicago home is located near the Chicago Cubs stadium, Wrigley Field. The brick home on a corner lot has four bedrooms. Lilly and his wife, Natasha did the decorating and the home has a modest, casual appeal. Key features include a wine cellar, roof decks and a heated garage. It also has a self-contained backyard courtyard.

Gallery: Ted Lilly in Chicago

Tags: celebrity real estate, chicago cubs, chicago real estate, illinois real estate, los angeles dodgers, sports stars real estate, ted lilly

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Messy McCourt Divorce Involves Los Angeles Dodgers

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

The Los Angeles Dodgers may be out of the playoffs but all of Los Angeles is still following the team, or rather, the drama surrounding the team's owners. Frank and Jamie McCourt announced that they are getting divorced recently and it's gotten ugly quickly. Jamie McCourt was fired from her position as the team's chief executive this week. Her name is already off the team website and Frank McCourt has said that his wife failed to follow procedures and acted inappropriately with a subordinate.

Radar Online says that the pair, who were college sweethearts and have been married for more than 20 years, did not have a prenuptial agreement. California is a community property state and that property may include ownership of the Dodgers. Frank McCourt has claimed that he is the sole owner of the Dodgers but Jamie McCourt considers herself a co-owner. The LA Times has reported that she is believed to have been contacting investors and prominent baseball figures to try and determine the future of the team. Some have questioned whether or not the public would accept Jamie McCourt as a solo owner.

The pair has more than just the team at stake. They also own a large amount of Los Angeles property including two homes in Holmbly Hills and two homes in Malibu including the the John Launter-designed Segel Residence which they bought for $27,250,272 from actors Courteney Cox and David Arquette.

UPDATE: Jamie McCourt's divorce filing states that she wants the same perks that she enjoyed during her marriage including private jet travel, luxury suites at five-star hotels and her usual access to stylists, spas and other personal care. She's asking for an astounding $321,000 a month in spousal support if reinstated to her former position as the head of the Dodgers, if not she wants nearly $488,000 per month.

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Tags: frank and jamie mccourt, frank mccourt, FrankAndJamieMccourt, FrankMccourt, jamie mccourt, JamieMccourt, los angeles dodgers, LosAngelesDodgers