Richard Sandomir has a story on the background of the Mets’ new minority and possible future majority owner, David Einhorn. It’s all worth reading because it gives you a sense of what makes the guy tick, but the lede is interesting to me.
Seems Einhorn -- who grew up in Milwaukee -- was interested in buying the Brewers when they were last for sale, but got interested too late in the game to bid against eventual owner Mark Attanasio. That missed opportunity led him to contact Bob DuPuy of Major League Baseball to begin conversations about the path it takes to get into the baseball ownership world. Those talks, one presumes, helped bring him into Major League Baseball’s good graces, thereby making his buy-in to the Mets a lot smoother.
But it also makes me wonder if the Mets aren’t his last stop on the ownership superhighway. Though he has denied it often, people talk about how Mark Attanasio -- who is from L.A. -- could one day buy the Dodgers. If that were to happen, wouldn’t it be obvious that Bud Selig would want to ensure that his former team -- the Brewers -- weren’t left in bad hands? And, if Selig were to help Einhorn into the Brewers’ ownership seat, wouldn’t he also then save his friends the Wilpons from being taken over by Einhorn in a couple of years, hopefully after their present financial peril has passed?
Yes, I just made that all up. But it kind of fits, no? And it’s not like Selig hasn’t orchestrated a little ownership musical chairs game before.Baseball: if you pursue that plan, all I ask is a shoutout at the press conference.