By the way, given the resources of the Lerner group, why couldn't they have contributed to the stadium?

Any money that they would have put into a new stadium, is money that would not go to Major League Baseball. I thought it was pretty much common knowledge that the reason Selig insisted on a publicly-financed stadium is that private financing would affect the owners' cut.

Selig only met with Lerner once because he's buddies with Kasten. Anyone who thought that anyone else had a chance to land this team was fooling themselves. We know that Bud only deals with pals of his.

There seems to be an "understanding" that the Lerner's will use some of their dollars to add back some of the amenities that cost-cutting by the city council removed. The limestone exterior, for example, was forsaken by precast concrete. I wouldn't be surprised if the Lerner's throw a big chunk of money at the new park.

Of course, the council's antics on Monday might put a kink in the money funnel. Marian Barry said that he specifically didn't want Ted Lerner to buy the team because his group wasn't "black enough," saying that all he had were a bunch of "rent-a-blacks."

Maybe Mr. Lerner just might take offense to that??

Why would MLB pay a penny if the city wants to? That'd just be stupid.