Thursday, June 16, 2011

Are The Mets Really Worth Just A Buck? Talk About Ripoffs!


Bad things sure do happen when you're in a financial mess. Just ask Mets owner Fred Wilpon. His dealings with crook extraordinaire Bernie Madoff is launching him into the real world of knocking your brains out to make a crap living.

How did that song go on the tv show Good Times? You know the one about a a struggling black family in Chicago in the '70's just trying to make ends meet starring Jimmy Walker? The lyrics went like this:

Good Times.
Any time you meet a payment.
Good Times.
Any time you need a friend.
Good Times.
Any time you're out from under.

Not getting hastled, not getting hustled.
Keepin' your head above water,
Making a wave when you can.

Temporary lay offs.
Good Times.
Easy credit rip offs.
Good Times.
Scratchin' and surviving.
Good Times.
Hangin in a chow line
Good Times.
Ain't we lucky we got 'em
Good Times.
  
In 2002 Wilpon bought out the rest of Nelson Doubleday Jr.'s stake in the Mets for $135 million. Including the 2002 season, the Mets win total looks like this: 75, 66, 71, 83, 97, 88, 89, 70, and 79. Their best year came in 2006 but came crashing down in game seven of the NLCS when Carlos Beltran, with the bases loaded and two outs in the ninth, down by two, struck out looking against Adam Wainwright.

Then, sometime during the eight years of Bush deregulation which gave birth to Enron and $800 a month electric bills along with a Herbert Hoover 1930's economy among other wonderful things, Wilpon played financial footsie with Madoff and his now legendary Ponzi scheme. It was reported that Wilpon lost about $700 million. But Madoff's bubble burst in December 2008, and Wilpon revised his figures saying his “losses” were a lot less. In fact, reports later had Wilpon actually making $300 million on the deal. Give this man a tax break John Boehner! Alas, in December Wilpon was named in lawsuit by other “investors” and now faces a $1 billion tab if he loses.

All this of course puts “W” in about the same place Beltran was against Wainwright in the 2006 NLCS. Down by two, bottom of the ninth just struggling to stay alive. Last month, Wilpon said the Mets could lose $70 million this season and that Madoff was actually once offered a stake in the team. Kinda like when Dick Cheney offered Enron executive and thief-to-be Ken Lay the position of head of the U.S. Treasury back in 2001.

Brother, Can You Spare A Dime?

Well because his baseball empire, much like the Mets did in September of 2008 and 2009, is about to pull a major Humpty Dumpty, an investor appears to have come to the “rescue.” Hedge Fund manager David Einhorn has agreed to buy a $200 minority share in the Mets mess. He runs Greenlight Capital RE Ltd., a Cayman Islands based reinsurance company (ahhh, there's something about a Cayman Islands outfit that makes me feel real confident about this whole thing). But Einhorn didn't make his mega millions being a putz (not the J.J. kind anyway).

According to Forbes.com, if the Wilpon family doesn't pay Einhorn back his $200 million in three years, Einhorn can obtain a 60% stake in the Mets for an additional $1. Yes you read right. $1. Enough for half of an Egg McMuffin without ham. And according to ESPN.com, Einhorn would still control 1/6 of the team if the Wilpon's do pay him back his original $200 million investment.

So Einhorn's $200 million could keep the Mets from becoming property of MLB like the old Montreal Expos and possibly the LA Dodgers, for the time being anyway.

And what if Wilpon loses his Madoff lawsuit? Terms of the deal won't matter because Wilpon will be next door neighbors in the projects with JJ.

Good Times. Ain't we lucky we got 'em?



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