He then elaborated: “The economics got so out of control because the Dodgers’ TV deal’s up for bid and so there’s a lot of groups coming in going, ‘This TV deal’s worth so much money that we’re gonna pay whatever it takes to get the Dodgers.’ And so they’re buying the TV rights deal first and the team second,” Mark said.

Well yea Mark. Have you seen this team? Mark Ellis is the starting second baseman. MARK ELLIS! You're not spending $1.5 billion for Mark Ellis.

I've been watching this show "Shark Tank" and I have to say that Mark Cuban is one of my favorite parts. He really strikes me as the type of person who just enjoys the kind of money that he has (and it's a lot!). Basically, I agree with #2 totally.

My Mark Cuban love is being sorely tested by my recent discovery that he is a big Ayn Rand fanboy. And no, I'm not looking to start a 5,000 post Ayn Rand thread (especially here). I still do hope he gets a MLB franchise, or, perhaps better yet, an English soccer league team. Those EPL owners blokes need Cuban more than any group of staid, antiquated wankers.

It’s a bit of a head-scratcher to come at it from this angle, because buying a baseball team is a huge package deal. Every team has TV rights. If they didn’t, revenues would be a lot lower. Basically, Cuban’s bid was far too low and he thinks the other bids are too high.

Basically, Cuban either had no idea how to value what he was bidding on or just wanted his name in the press as a bidder but never had any intention of paying what it would take to close the deal.

The buzz around here is that the bidding may reach $2 billion which would allow Frank McCourt to settle all his debts and still walk away a billionaire.

Isn't this basically the same thing that happened with the Rangers? Cuban talked big, and then when it came time to put up or shut up, he wasn't willing to pay what it took to buy into the MLB owners club.

2 billion? Really? Yikes.

There's an improv show that was taped in London last year, with a British audience, but pretended to be LA-based. It's a Whose Line Is It Anyway? clone with each sketch based on episodes in the life of a guest, which - in the case of the taping my wife and I attended - was Mark Cuban. He seemed like good fun, although I wasn't previously aware just how keen he was on letting everyone know how much he works out.

I may have been one of five people in the audience who knew who he was, but Wayne Brady, Colin Mochrie, etc. extracted plenty of laughs anyway. Fred Willard hosted; I think the working title was 'Trust Us With Your Life', or similar. Worth a look if you like that kind of thing.

The buzz around here is that the bidding may reach $2 billion which would allow Frank McCourt to settle all his debts and still walk away a billionaire.

I don't think it even reaches $1.5 billion. No way it gets to $2 billion.

The buzz around here is that the bidding may reach $2 billion which would allow Frank McCourt to settle all his debts and still walk away a billionaire.

So this is why they're taking their time with this. They're putting Boras in charge of the sale, but had to wait until he got Prince settled away.

I like Shark Tank. It's awesome what kind of ideas come out of entrepreneur ingenuity, and you see some really useful inventions/services on that show.

Isn't this basically the same thing that happened with the Rangers? Cuban talked big, and then when it came time to put up or shut up, he wasn't willing to pay what it took to buy into the MLB owners club.

Cuban is an actual businessman. Broadcast.com was his 3rd or 5th successful business IIRC, and when he sold it he immediately collared the Yahoo stock he was given to lock in it's vastly over-inflated price.

He understands what businesses are really worth, and he's not interested in overpaying, even for a sports team. My guess is the "winner" isn't going to see a profit out of this for a long time waiting for revenues and cash flow to grow enough to justify their purchase price.

He understands what businesses are really worth, and he's not interested in overpaying, even for a sports team. My guess is the "winner" isn't going to see a profit out of this for a long time waiting for revenues and cash flow to grow enough to justify their purchase price.

Maybe, but the Texas Rangers, with their new tv deal, look like a bargain in hindsight and he thought they were overpriced, too. I suspect his heart just isn't in it.

Well, he successfully sold Broadcast.com. Yahoo threw a ton of stock at him for what amounted to owning 4 or 5 Cheesecake Factories.

The buzz around here is that the bidding may reach $2 billion which would allow Frank McCourt to settle all his debts and still walk away a billionaire.

i'm not saying it hasn't been said, but i haven't heard that anywhere. i have heard $1.5 billion ... so ... who knows? tell you what, though. those kinds of bids better have the parking lots as part of the deal. i'd be really surprised if anybody is willing to pony up that much money and still have to deal with mccourt.

I don't think it even reaches $1.5 billion. No way it gets to $2 billion.

Various writers are claiming the bidding is already at $1.5 billion, but since last week's bids were non-binding, it's impossible to tell how much the numbers mean at this point.

Well, he successfully sold Broadcast.com. Yahoo threw a ton of stock at him for what amounted to owning 4 or 5 Cheesecake Factories.

Well at the time, Cheesecake Factories were far more profitable than Yahoo....

Cheesecake Factories are still more profitable than Yahoo.

Maybe he should buy the Braves, then he won't have to think about TV deals for a long, long time.