The increasingly hostile bankruptcy battle between the Dodgers and MLB will continue in a Wilmington courtroom this morning as Judge Kevin Gross of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware will hear arguments on rival interim financing plans. The club and Owner Frank McCourt are seeking approval to maintain access to a $150M loan from hedge fund Highbridge Capital Management. MLB, conversely, has its own competing proposal, one it and several other third parties claim is economically superior to the Highbridge bid. McCourt, however, has steadily argued that the MLB proposal is actually an effort by Commissioner Bud Selig to separate him from the team through a series of default mechanisms, and Monday likened Selig to "the devil."
The league has made its own character assaults back on McCourt, claiming he has looted the team of more than $180M in personal distributions and oversaw a precipitous decline in Dodger Stadium security. Gross does not necessarily have to rule in favor of either bid as currently written, and instead can signal approval will not happen without modifications. But when Gross picks a winner, the prevailing party will have a key early advantage in the ultimate outcome of the club.
