Hoo boy, I haven’t had my coffee yet and I know nothing about operating a major league baseball team..but this Times article is sure to upset the civilian population. Go read now.
…they sometimes adopted the strategy of placing deferred money owed the players with Mr. Madoff’s investment firm. They would have to pay the player, but the owners of the club would be able to make money for themselves in the meantime. There never seemed to be much doubt about that, according to several people with knowledge of the arrangements.
“Bernie was part of the business plan for the Mets,” a former employee of the club said.
via Bernie Madoff Had Wide Role in Mets’ Finances – NYTimes.com.
The article doesn’t upset me. None of it surprises me either.
Let’s be honest, the entire financial community was enthralled with Madoff. It’s easy to use hindsight and point fingers at the Wilpons. But, are they any different than all he people that got sold on investing in the housing debt backed securities, that nearly the nations major banks?
I just think it’s nonsense to say the Wilpons “should have known,” when the damn responsible government regulators and financial rating agencies weren’t overly concerned.
It’s called common sense… if you don’t have it, I don’t feel overly bad for you if you lose your money, whether you be Jeff Wilpon or Joe Blow on the street corner.
It does come off as extremely fishy though that all these people who are “smart” businessmen didn’t think something was up with Madoff, yet kept funneling him funds… if anything this was likely more of a hush hush wink wink situation…either that, or the owners are stupider than we originally thought.
The Wilpons have been elusive/dishonest about their Madoff exposure from the moment the story broke. They have forfeited any benefit of the doubt.
Funneling hundreds of millions of dollars thru a company without seeking an independent audit? Hmmmm.
Their desire to all of a sudden give up 25% of the team without much of a fight also seems a little telling…