What is the reason behind so many near no-hitters recently? Will the Red Sox improve to 6-0 this season at Yankee Stadium? Matt Snyder joins Lauren Shehadi with the answers.

By Evan Brunell

REYES TO RED SOX? Red Sox outfielder Mike Cameron calls Jed Lowrie "solid" and Marco Scutaro "pretty good" -- "but the talent [Reyes] possesses is very intriguing," he says.

Cameron, who was teammates with Reyes a few seasons ago and still keeps in touch, believes the shortstop could be a major part of a Boston squad looking to win the World Series.

"It's a different animal here [with the Red Sox]," Cameron said. "In Boston, there's one team there and the primary focus is nothing else but [a freaking] title. [But] I think they would love him because of the way he plays. Just the energy, man."

Reyes is an impending free agent, and with Lowrie, Scutaro and top prospect Jose Iglesias in the fold, it's difficult to imagine the Red Sox striking for Reyes. However, if the money and inclination is there, it's tough to deny that Reyes would provide an immediate boon to Boston. (New York Post)

One question, though: is investing in Reyes really a good idea? Vince Gennaro, a baseball economics author, says it would be foolhardy for the Mets -- or any other team for that matter -- to invest big dollars in a player having a career year.

"The odds that this is the new Jose Reyes and that he's going to have a five-year run that even remotely resembles this are minuscule," Gennaro said. "But that's not where the [New York] fan base is going to come from. They're going to look at this as one more sign, if he gets dealt, of a lack of commitment by ownership." (Wall Street Journal)

DRAFT RESULTS: Which teams had the best drafts of the just-concluded MLB draft? Those in the know tap the Diamondbacks, Blue Jays, Rays, Padres and Red Sox. (MLB.com)

PAY UP: Dodgers team owner Frank McCourt continues to scratch and claw to keep his team, and will be able to make June 15 payroll. That will allow him to still have the team during a court hearing on June 22 wto determine if ex-wife Jamie McCourt has a legal right to block the TV deal that would solve McCourt's financial problems. (USA Today)

OZZIE'S BEEF: Ozzie Guillen doesn't have much patience for actor Sean Penn, who is fighting against U.S. perceptions that Venezuela's Hugo Chavez is a dictator. The incredulous Guillen responded to an editorial Penn wrote recently and invited him to live in Venezuela for a year and see if his mind changes as to whether Chavez is good for the country or not. (Big League Stew)

ONEY'S BEEF: Ozzie's son, Oney, takes after his father in not being afraid to pop off. The ex-White Sox employee sarcastically tweeted that it was no surprise the White Sox drafted a black player with their first-round pick -- hinting at racial undertones of GM Kenny Williams. He later denied the claims, but it's tough to believe him especially when fellow brother Ozney went undrafted. (Chicago Sun-Times)

OZNEY'S PLIGHT: So Ozney probably won't ever play in the White Sox system if he ever enters professional baseball. Williams skated through the minefield of addressing the issue by saying he will not sign Ozney as an undrafted free agent because of the potential for distractions. In addition, Williams adds, there were no personal motivations not to draft Ozney because the White Sox can't afford to let personal issues get in the way of drafting players. (Chicago Tribune)

LOVE THE GLOVE: Remember how attached you were to your baseball glove as a kid? Well, baseball players haven't really changed. Torii Hunter inidcates he is especially fond of his gloves in a wide-ranging article dedicated to the love players show for their gloves. Hunter currently calls his glove Coco and formerly called his glove Sheila, Vanity, Susan and Delicious. He rarely lets his gloves out of sight.  "Every once in a while during batting practice, while I'm hitting, I'll turn around and look at my glove and say, 'Are you OK?' " Hunter says. "It's very personal. That glove was something that got me to the big leagues. I make a living with it." (Los Angeles Times)

NO BLOCKBUSTER: Don't expect the Phillies to make a major move at the trade deadline, GM Ruben Amaro says. Part of that is because of the quality of the club, but a bigger part has to do with the minimal dollars the Phillies have before they hit the luxury tax threshold. Skipper Charlie Manuel wants a bat, but if he gets one, it will be a complementary one. (CSN Philly)

IMPENDING PROMOTION? Lots of players are receiving the call to the majors now that the Super 2 deadline is firmly done with. But don't bet on Cubs' center fielder Brett Jackson arriving anytime soon, who is slumping after suffering a finger injury. (MLB.com)

TWO-FACED: Ohh, A-Rod... you just don't stop giving everyone ammunition, do you? Rodriguez signed on to be spokesperson for coconut water company Vita Coco despite investing copious amounts of money with rival Zico. "It's a hell of a lot more money than I ever invested in the company," confused Zico CEO Mark Rampolla said. (CNBC)

EASING IN: Brandon Lyon is returning to the Astros, but it will take him some time to reclaim the closer's role. (Houston Chronicle)

PAJAMA PARTY: The Rays had a pajama party Wednesday night as they prepared to leave Los Angeles. Click through for great pictures of the team. (St. Petersburg Times -- link 1, link 2, link 3)

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By Matt Snyder

If the Dodgers turn up for sale -- and it's likely they will be permanently removed from Frank McCourt's ownership at some point -- two familiar faces will reportedly be in on the bidding. Former Dodgers first baseman Steve Garvey has put together a group that is ready to make a serious charge toward owning the ballclub and he has now added Orel Hershiser to the fray. With the addition, the group is now being called the Garvey-Hershiser group.

The LA Daily Newsreports:

"Garvey approached me," Hershiser confirmed in a phone interview.

"We've always talked and communicated through the years. He was a little more of a role model for me, the way he did things. I was like, 'That's what I want to do.' He's been a good businessman.

"When he called and said he wanted me to be part of this group, I said, 'Garv, I'd always be interested in helping and doing something like this that would be a lot of fun.' We're forming a group that's investigating situations as they arise. That would be very interesting for me."

Garvey, 62, played 14 years for the Dodgers, winning one MVP and making eight All-Star games. He was a member of the World Series champion 1981 Dodgers and played in three World Series as a member of the team.

Hershiser, 52, pitched for the Dodgers for 13 seasons. He made three All Star games and won a Cy Young. He was the ace of the 1988 World Series championship Dodgers team, winning the World Series MVP after two complete-game victories. He presently serves as a commentator for ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball, but would step down if he was part of the group that purchased the Dodgers.

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By C. Trent Rosecrans

Dodgers owner Frank McCourt has indeed met the team's May 31 payroll, the Los Angeles Times reports.

There had been concern the embattled owner would not be able to make payroll this month, but the newspaper reported earlier in the week that McCourt was expected to make payroll. However, he's still searching for funds for the June 15 payday, the paper reports.

McCourt is trying to keep ownership until at least June 22, when he has a hearing that he hopes will result in him being able to accept a proposed TV contract between the Dodgers and Fox.

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By Evan Brunell

As CBS Los Angeles reports, the family of Bryan Stow plans to sue the Los Angeles Dodgers in a lawsuit to be filed around noontime PT.

Stow, of course, was the victim of the senseless beating on Opening Day after the Giants-Dodgers game, in which Stow was clad in a Giants jersey and was jumped after the game for the "crime" of rooting for the Giants. The two suspects, as well as a female that helped them get away, remained at large for months until recent arrests captured who was reportedly the lead attacker.

Stow's family is suing the Dodgers, who did not have a chief of security to begin the year to cut costs (they have one now), for liability of the injury, saying it took 15 minutes for security personnel to respond to the notification of the assault. The Stows are not suing for a specific amount of money, but have said Stow will need $45 to $50 million for a good quality of life.

Stow was just transferred to a San Francisco hospital after being deemed healthy enough to move from L.A. He is no longer having seizures or is in a coma, but has yet to wake up, his sister said.

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By C. Trent Rosecrans

Bud Selig's newest ally in the fight against Frank McCourt may be his ex-wife, Jamie McCourt.

According to the Los Angeles Times, Jamie McCourt will ask a judge to order the immediate sale of the Dodgers. Her argument is that the actions of her ex-husband have hurt the value of the Dodgers and the judge overseeing their divorce should put the club up for sale so both parties can get maximum value. I'm no judge (or attorney or even an ex-attorney), but it doesn't sound unreasonable to me.

That could keep Selig from having to try to seize the franchise from McCourt and what could amount to a nasty legal battle following that.

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By Evan Brunell

If Frank McCourt wants to keep the Dodgers, he may be able to do so by declaring bankruptcy, the Los Angeles Times reports.

Seems odd, doesn't it? Declare bankruptcy and keep the team, but that's the challenge at play as MLB moves closer and closer to trying to strip McCourt of his power as he currently is unable to meet May payroll for his players. If McCourt declared bankruptcy, he would be able to go before a judge and contend that his $3 billion deal with Fox that is currently gathering dust on Bud Selig's desk is what is needed to repay his debtors. The court could rule that the deal needs to be approved, because the whole point of bankruptcy court is to ensure that lenders are paid back.

"You can't tell somebody you can't get paid back," a sports investment banker, who wished to remain anonymous, said. "The one right a debtor has is the right to pay back his lenders."

The possibility of a bankruptcy filing may be why Bud Selig appointed a trustee to go through the Dodgers' financials. A source said that Selig hopes to learn whether McCourt would default on loans to companies controlling Dodger Stadium and surrounding land should he file for bankruptcy.

On the face of it, McCourt would have strong positioning in bankruptcy court and would be considered a heavy favorite to eventually win out. However, he may run into problems with his lenders, who may not want to get on baseball's bad side. They could refuse McCourt's reorganization plans in a tacit move to freeze McCourt out of the game in order to keep its business with baseball and the other 29 clubs.

"If the creditors were completely supportive of Mr. McCourt, he would be in a pretty strong position," said Rob Kampfner, an attorney for White and Case, the firm that represented Nolan Ryan's group in winning a bankruptcy court bid for the Rangers. "But they're probably inclined to see their portfolio in a much larger sense than people that sell pencils to the Dodgers."

Should the creditors not approve McCourt's plan, he would have to give up the team but would have a better chance of getting the most bang for his buck via bankruptcy court. While MLB must still approve all new owners, the road toward doing that is far easier in bankruptcy court.  Selig's influence is widely felt during team purchases as he essentially handpicks new owners, but that influence zeroes out in bankruptcy court, which would allow McCourt to sell to the highest bidder and ensure top dollar in an auction.

However, McCourt's ex-wife, Jamie, may have a say in the proceeds. Jamie could argue that Frank cannot take the team into bankruptcy without her approval as she owns half the team, as a person familiar with her thinking said. However, she would likely not stand in the way of the filing, given it would end up boosting the price of the Dodgers.

Baseball does have one last line of defense as it could exercise a "voluntary termination" clause that the MLB constitution has in place in case of any bankruptcy filing. However, baseball would open itself to criticism and litigation if they did so as that clause was not used during last season's Rangers bankruptcy filing.

Regardless of how the bankruptcy filing plays out, McCourt would have a stronger hand to play against Selig as he would have a strong chance of retaining the team and if he didn't, would be able to maximize the amount the team is sold for while thumbing his nose at Selig one last time. 

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By Evan Brunell

On Monday, commissioner Bud Selig appeared on ESPN New York 1050 to speak about the Dodgers's maladies, as well as fend off comparisons to the Mets.

"There are enormous complexities in both deals," Selig said of both teams' financial situations. The Dodgers are currently scrambling to meet May payroll in light of owner Frank McCourt's lack of funds. McCourt has just gone through a nasty and well-publicized divorce and in the process has sullied his name with the other 29 owners. McCourt is desperately trying to hang onto the club even as Selig appointed a trustee to oversee the club, while the Mets are reeling from Bernie Madoff's Ponzi scheme that has put them in the sights of Madoff trustee Irving Picard, who is suing owner Fred Wilpon and his real-estate company for $1 billion. The Wilpons have denied complicity in the Madoff scandal but are still scrapping for funds and have opened a bidding process for a minority owner. 

"I've read all these stories that say 'Well, they're really the same [situation],'" Selig said. "They're far from the same. Without going into details that haven't been announced, Fred Wilpon and I have been friends for a long time, and I have enormous respect and affection for him. But Fred Wilpon is doing what he should do. He's looking for an economic mechanism that will bring equity into the club: Sheer raw cash to put it in the most candid way. That alone is a huge difference. To compare one situation to the other is factually incorrect."

On the face of it, it seems rather odd that Selig would point toward Wilpon's pursuing of cash as the main difference between the Wilpons and McCourt. After all, McCourt is seeking an immediate transfusion of $285 million in a TV deal with Fox that will pay out $3 billion. However, CBSSports.com's Scott Miller comes to the rescue with an explanation, saying the difference likely lies in the fact that the money from the TV deal is in a contract, while the minority owner will bring money to the Wilpons that is "free and clear" to use. "The TV deal is something a new owner would inherit that may or may not be market value; one worry is that McCourt is possibly undervaluing the TV deal to get quick cash," Miller says.

"I've talked to Fred a lot about it, and I feel very comfortable that we're gonna have a very reasoned economic solution to that problem as opposed to another," Selig added. "They're approaching it the way I would've approached it. They're looking to add equity and I don't doubt that's gonna work out. The Madoff situation? That's well in the future. But in this case, to solve the immediate problem, they're doing it."

Meanwhile, the Dodgers reportedly will not be able to meet May payroll if Selig (pictured, with McCourt in happier days) doesn't approve the TV deal. That's how bad McCourt's financial situation is, and if he faults on payroll, may give baseball the legal footing to seize the team outright rather than place a proxy in place. McCourt would certainly mount a legal challenge, but would find himself on shaky footing both in the courts and in an ability to pay his lawyers. But Selig says he's not sure if the Dodgers can meet May payroll, even though the trustee, Tom Schieffer, has likely been in the role long enough to get an idea as to the urgency.

"I don't know that right now," Selig said of the May payroll. "I know that story has been written a lot, but the fact is I don't know. I know our people are tracking this very closely. I have appointed ambassador Schieffer, who of course ran the Rangers for years. Tom will keep me very well posted. We've also added Dick Freeman today. He ran the Pirates and has a great accounting background. I'll be able to give you an answer as we move forward here, but at the moment, we are monitoring this situation very closely."

Selig has yet to approve the deal for a variety of reasons. One reason is his attempt to freeze McCourt out of baseball, another may have to do with ex-wife Jamie McCourt approving the deal, and yet another is Selig's belief that McCourt will use the money to settle his divorce and other debts even as McCourt has promised to put in writing that the money will go to the team.

One other burning question that finally got answered is how McCourt got his hands on the Dodgers in the first place. The popular belief both in and outside of baseball is that no one gets a team without Selig's personal approval. His cronies -- the ones that will toe the line and follow his lead -- are the ones that get teams, as Mark Cuban can attest to. However, it appears this isn't always the case.

"I'll tell you what happened. There's a lot of history here, which a lot of people don't seem to understand," Selig said. "There were two other bidders. Fox was anxious to get rid of the team. They were all really anxious. I'll tell you what happened. There were a couple of groups: A group led by Dave Checketts and another group. And for whatever reason, they weren't around at the end, so Fox sold the club to the McCourts and presented them to us. So this idea that we ought to examine ourselves, there was nobody else. We have a long relationship with Fox. There were no other bidders."

So wait, no one else but McCourt wanted the Dodgers? That's rather surprising, as the franchise is one of the most storied in the game and in a major media market. If and when McCourt is booted, there should be plenty of interest in a club that cost McCourt only $371 million to purchase and now has a Forbes valuation of $800 million.

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By Evan Brunell

The Dodgers saga is far from over, as the Los Angeles Times reports that Frank McCourt will be unable to meet May payroll without approval of a TV deal with FOX that will give L.A. $3 billion, with $285 million payable immediately that would cover payroll for the remainder of the season.

However, that deal is wallowing at the feet of commissioner Bud Selig who is awaiting both the approval of McCourt's ex-wife, Jamie, for the deal along with Tom Schieffer's OK. Schieffer was recently appointed as monitor of the Dodgers in a power-grabbing move by Selig that is thought to be an attempt by the commissioner to push McCourt out of town. Schieffer is reviewing all Dodger finances and Selig will not approve any deal until Schieffer completes that review. 

"It will be a thorough investigation," Schieffer said. "I would anticipate it would be longer than two weeks."

It's possible Schieffer will not conclude his investigation until the end of May, which will really put the squeeze on McCourt. Even if Schieffer comes through and OKs the deal, it's difficult to imagine Selig giving the green light in time for McCourt to pay his players. With the Dodgers then defaulting on payroll obligations, Selig would be able to legally and formally seize the team from McCourt and force a sale. McCourt could circumnavigate this by negotiating yet another personal loan, but it is unlikely FOX would grant another personal loan on top of the $30 million lent for McCourt to meet April payroll.

That means what is already a messy situation could get messier. If Selig doesn't release his grip on the TV deal and McCourt faults with baseball grabbing the team, McCourt would certainly sue over the proceedings and would have a solid case in court as he could easily contend that baseball froze him out and made him unable to make his payments through no fault of his own. Of course, McCourt dug his own grave, but you can't blame him for trying to climb out of it.

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