harping on the Mets.

I was pondering the messy affair between the New York Mets and Bernie Madoff’s epic ponzi scheme. It’s arguably the biggest story leading up to pitchers and catchers. I sifted through statements from Irving H. Picard, the bankruptcy trustee (who sued the Mets) assigned to compile assets to compensate Madoff’s victims, and from Saul Katz and the Wilpon’s, the owners of the Mets. The connections between the current changes and what transpired with Madoff are fascinating and difficult to ignore. It’s like dominos. I wondered why all these changes had such a quick turn-around time, particularly if it stems from lackluster seasons or money problems. The baseball fan in me wants to believe the former while the latter is all too prevalent.

Things to consider:

*Sandy Alderson was hired to be the new general manager. Rumor has it he was brought in to deal with the financial aftermath rather than contributing on-field baseball knowledge from a personnel standpoint.

*The Mets spent less than the Pirates this offseason. Their payroll in 2010 was the fifth highest at $133M. Are they preparing for the worst? Is their frugalness an aberration?

*Bud Selig is more than worried.  Selig cannot have instability from an ownership perspective. Furthermore, if we’ve learned anything from the chaotic divorce between Frank and Jamie McCourt, it’s that hard line money is not flexible. Ownership mishaps in baseball don’t occur often because it only perpetuates itself when Selig does not intervene. He has already met with Mets team officials.

Now, the team’s brass said they need to sell a portion of the franchise to raise capital. They need it now.  It was reported they owe anywhere from $400M-$1B while subsequently, as the New York Times reported, they could be involved in a separate problematic hedge fund scheme. Ultimately, that has not been proven and it will probably go to court. Nonetheless, it appears team owners had no idea their investments with Madoff were faulty and not a soul could blame them for that. That is the sad part of it. The fans deserve better.

The Mets are such a profitable franchise as well. In pure economics, they are the third most valuable franchise in baseball, trailing only the Yankees and Red Sox. What happens next is unknown. It's scary for the Mets and for the sport as a whole. The aforementioned tidbits are mere pieces of an explanation. The only reason I write about this is because I love the game and now it's suddenly impacted by one of the largest frauds in history. Indeed, many have and will continue to suffer from Madoff's deceitfulness, but It goes to show that immunity -- regardless of how large the entity -- can be hindered in the quickest of fashions.  We could be witnessing the overhaul of a major franchise; the unfolding of an organization entrenched in financial distress and transition seemingly out of reach for the time being. I hope they find their course.