If the dire situation on the field was not enough for Mets fans, the situation in the executive offices can make them worry even more these days. Today, the New York Daily News is reporting that team owner Fred Wilpon borrowed $25 million big ones from Major League Baseball to help "shore up the team's liquidity." In other words this was a one-time bailout that helped the team get back on its feet.
At the heart of all this is the shadow of Bernie Madoff, Ponzi schemer extraordinaire who bilked many investors, including Wilpon, out of hard earned money. While this may make Mets fans squirm as they hear about this loan (that, by the way, must be paid back), they think about the future of this organization and fear things are quite grim indeed.
Last month Wilpon announced that he was searching for a limited partner to buy a stake in the Mets. It seems everyone from Donald Trump to Justin Bieber has been rumored to be looking to get involved, but what price will be ultimately paid besides money? How will this affect day-to-day operation of the club, and more specifically, what happens on the field?
Right now Mets fans have little if anything to look forward to this season. Johann Santana will probably not pitch until after the All Star break, and with no major trades and returning players who, besides David Wright and Ike Davis, inspire little if any confidence, 2011 is shaping up to be a long wait until next year exercise in more futility.
The only bright side is that perhaps this revelation will lend credence to Wilpon's plea that he too was a victim of Madoff. We will have to see what happens in court in regards to that, but right now we Mets fans might as well settle in for the bumpy ride this season; from all indications things are going to get worse before they get any better in Metsville.
Photo credit: Simmons/Daily News
One thing is very certain: if Trump comes on board things will get interesting very quickly. The Wilpons have never been interesting. They don't even register a blip on New York sports pages - except if they are involved with the infamous Bernie Madoff. Living in this town we Mets fan have always had to endure the back page headlines about another sports owner - the late George Steinbrenner (and now his sons). He was always hiring and firing Billy Martin, warning Reggie Jackson (and everyone else from Horace Clarke to Joba Chamberlain), and basically creating for himself a colorful personality that increased the Yankee brand.
Even famed New York Daily News cartoonist Bill Gallo couldn't resist creating a recurring cartoon character in Steinbrenner's honor. Mets fans had one too - the oh so lovely Basement Bertha. This figures to be the Mets' fate: the Yankees get a general and we get an overweight woman living in the cellar. That is our lot in this town.