OOTP Developments Forums - View Single Post - Baseball in Seattle-History with a Twist

coffeyfiend · 03-01-2008, 01:11 AM

"You did what!?" I yelled.
"I sold the team." Dewey replied, infuriatingly calmly.
"You sold THE TEAM!? The team that you bought a year ago!?"
"Yes, I sold the team, Steve."
"Please, please tell me that the buyer is local." I pleaded.
"Not exactly." Dewey stated; looking not in the least bit ashamed.
"What do you mean, 'Not exactly'?"
"Well, I sold the team to Bud Selig."
"Bud 'I tried to buy the White Sox' Selig? Bud 'I live in freaking Milwaukee, freaking Wisconsin' Selig?" I yelled; unable to contain my rage.
"Yes, that Bud Selig" Dewey responded; still infuriatingly calm.

I'd heard enough, I felt betrayed by a man I had considered my friend. I stormed out of the room, slamming his office door behind me.

Dewey had sold the Pilots-my Pilots-to Bud Selig for $12 million. Selig was going to move the team to Milwaukee, freaking Wisconsin and rename them the Brewers after his favorite childhood minor league baseball team. I vowed to do whatever it took to see that this deal did not happen. I needed to find a local buyer; hopefully someone willing to pay Dewey as much or more than Selig had agreed to pay. Someone who would keep the team in Seattle.

I didn't have any trouble finding people who were as upset as I was by this sudden turn of events. Both of Washington's senators, as well as the state attorney general were all upset. Things were looking up when the fellow Major League owners rejected the move to Milwaukee under pressure from the Washington politicians. Fred Danz, a local theater chain owner then came forward with an offer for $10 million. Dewey turned it down though, when the bank came to collect on a $4 million loan it had made to him and Daley; apparently $6 million just wasn't enough to sell the team. Eddie Carlson, owner of Westin Hotels came forward with a nonprofit organization and offered to purchase the team. This deal too, was nixed by fellow owners, who felt that having a nonprofit organization as a teams owner would devalue the other Major League teams.

After a winter of hemming and hawing, the Major League owners tentatively approved of the sale to Selig. On March 17th, 1970, the State of Washington filed an injunction to stop the deal from occurring. In response, Dewey filed for bankruptcy. At the bankruptcy hearing, my boss, General Manager Marvin Milkes, testified that there wasn't enough money to pay the players, coaches and other staff. Due to rules put in place by Major League Baseball, if player salaries were 10 days late, then the players became free agents. If all our players became free agents, then Seattle wouldn't have a team anyway. In light of this situation, the Seattle Pilots were declared a bankrupt team and the sale of the team to Bud Selig was approved.

I HATE Bud Selig...

03-01-2008, 01:11 AM	#3 (permalink)
coffeyfiend Minors (Single A) Join Date: Apr 2005 Posts: 83	"You did what!?" I yelled. "I sold the team." Dewey replied, infuriatingly calmly. "You sold THE TEAM!? The team that you bought a year ago!?" "Yes, I sold the team, Steve." "Please, please tell me that the buyer is local." I pleaded. "Not exactly." Dewey stated; looking not in the least bit ashamed. "What do you mean, 'Not exactly'?" "Well, I sold the team to Bud Selig." "Bud 'I tried to buy the White Sox' Selig? Bud 'I live in freaking Milwaukee, freaking Wisconsin' Selig?" I yelled; unable to contain my rage. "Yes, that Bud Selig" Dewey responded; still infuriatingly calm. I'd heard enough, I felt betrayed by a man I had considered my friend. I stormed out of the room, slamming his office door behind me. Dewey had sold the Pilots-my Pilots-to Bud Selig for $12 million. Selig was going to move the team to Milwaukee, freaking Wisconsin and rename them the Brewers after his favorite childhood minor league baseball team. I vowed to do whatever it took to see that this deal did not happen. I needed to find a local buyer; hopefully someone willing to pay Dewey as much or more than Selig had agreed to pay. Someone who would keep the team in Seattle. I didn't have any trouble finding people who were as upset as I was by this sudden turn of events. Both of Washington's senators, as well as the state attorney general were all upset. Things were looking up when the fellow Major League owners rejected the move to Milwaukee under pressure from the Washington politicians. Fred Danz, a local theater chain owner then came forward with an offer for $10 million. Dewey turned it down though, when the bank came to collect on a $4 million loan it had made to him and Daley; apparently $6 million just wasn't enough to sell the team. Eddie Carlson, owner of Westin Hotels came forward with a nonprofit organization and offered to purchase the team. This deal too, was nixed by fellow owners, who felt that having a nonprofit organization as a teams owner would devalue the other Major League teams. After a winter of hemming and hawing, the Major League owners tentatively approved of the sale to Selig. On March 17th, 1970, the State of Washington filed an injunction to stop the deal from occurring. In response, Dewey filed for bankruptcy. At the bankruptcy hearing, my boss, General Manager Marvin Milkes, testified that there wasn't enough money to pay the players, coaches and other staff. Due to rules put in place by Major League Baseball, if player salaries were 10 days late, then the players became free agents. If all our players became free agents, then Seattle wouldn't have a team anyway. In light of this situation, the Seattle Pilots were declared a bankrupt team and the sale of the team to Bud Selig was approved. I HATE Bud Selig...