Joe Torre Drops out of Running to Buy LA Dodgers

Former Los Angeles Dodgers manager Joe Torre is no longer in the running to buy the team, according to a report from the Los Angeles Times. Torre and Los Angeles developer Rick Caruso had entered a joint bid to buy the team.

Caruso chose to withdraw the bid in part because current Dodgers owner Frank McCourt is refusing to include Dodger Stadium's parking lots in the sale. Indications are that McCourt intends to keep the lots so he can build on them later.

What It Means

MLB.com reported on Wednesday that McCourt will ultimately narrow the field of bidders to five. He started with 10, but the Caruso/Torre bid and Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban's bid can already be counted out. Cuban was eliminated from the bidding in January, according to the Los Angeles Times.

In the end, the Dodgers franchise is expected to sell for somewhere in the $1.6-2 billion range. 

Caruso determined that was a steep price to pay for a stadium without parking lots. The Times notes that Caruso actually commissioned studies on how to improve parking and traffic at Dodger Stadium and "ultimately decided he could not provide the desired fan experience without control of the parking lots."

I'm assuming these studies did not require rocket science to lead Caruso to that conclusion.

What Happens Next

Caruso and Torre can reenter the bidding, but only if McCourt agrees to include the parking lots in the sale. But, seeing as how McCourt already has a bidder on the line who has agreed to let him keep the lots, my assumption is that McCourt is not going to do that.

Assuming Caruso and Torre don't reenter the bidding, the field will only get narrower from here. The clock is ticking, too, as McCourt must submit a finalist to purchase the team by April 1, with the actual sale being finalized on April 30.

So before long, the Dodgers will be out of McCourt's hands.

At which point Dodgers fans will rejoice.