D-backs attorney Leo Beus yesterday warned that MLB officials are so "alarmed by recent equipment breakdowns at Chase Field that they might require" the team to "leave Phoenix unless the county government pays for millions of dollars" in ballpark repairs, according to a front-page piece by Rebekah Sanders of the ARIZONA REPUBLIC. It is the "first time the team has indicated that MLB is directly involved in the dispute, ramping up pressure in its long-running lawsuit against Maricopa County." Beus said if MLB "decides they want to create issues for us, there might not be baseball at all in Arizona." County officials counter, however, that "recent pipe failures being pointed out by the team were the responsibility" of the D-backs and were "subject to routine maintenance that doesn't apply to the bigger argument over major repairs." Beus "raised the MLB specter as he argued to a Superior Court judge that the case should be decided quickly because the team is 'facing a crisis.'" Beus said that because of the breakdowns, MLB engineers will "visit in a few days to evaluate Chase Field." Cameron Artigue, a private attorney representing Maricopa County, called the D-backs argument a "red herring." Artigue: "This (lawsuit) has nothing to do with the water leaks and the merits of Chase Field" (ARIZONA REPUBLIC, 8/2). YAHOO SPORTS' Chris Cwik notes the battle between the D-backs and Maricopa County has been "ongoing since last March." Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Karen Mullins is "deciding whether to hold a trial or send the case to arbitration." The D-backs are "hoping for the latter, as it typically leads to a faster conclusion" (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 8/2).
