The Wilpons may be forced to sell the Mets as early as this season.
The New York Times reported yesterday that Major League Baseball will not loan any more money to the New York Mets. This comes after the league loaned $25 million to the team last November to help the club “meet operating costs.”
For the Wilpons, their ownership of the Mets appears truly endangered.
The article goes on to state that should the Wilpons, who are currently facing a $1 billion lawsuit by victims of the Bernie Madoff fraud, be unable to financially continue to operate the franchise, the league may change their position on loaning money to the Mets to “avoid a fire sale of one of its elite clubs” or “help the Mets avoid defaulting on certain payments, like player salaries.”
However, the article states the league would not offer enough money to protect the Wilpons’ ownership of the team. In other words, the league will protect their interests, but not the Wilpons’.
The Mets reliance on the league for financial support, again, the article suggests, is an indication that traditional commercial banks have closed their doors to the Wilpons.
All of this comes after the Wilpons put 25 percent of the team up for sale in January.
The Wilpons are in deep, deep trouble. Can you imagine if they sell the Mets because they can’t pay off their Oliver Perez contract?
Wow, we’ve seen a string of heartbreaking, scandalous and disappointing seasons in the Omar Minaya Era, but this one is wasting no time getting off to a disastrous start.
As a Mets fan, I want to remind the Shea faithful, the Flushing Meadows crowd, the No. 7 Line Baseball Express…Being a Yankees fan is cake and cookies. Being a Mets fan takes strength.
Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com