Dodgers Will Lose Players if They Can't Pay the Bills

(NewsCore) - The cash-strapped Los Angeles Dodgers franchise risks losing its players to free agency if it cannot find the funds to pay their wages at the end of this month, Bloomberg reported Thursday.

The report suggests players could file to become free agents if the team cannot make payroll, as has been widely predicted in recent days by various media outlets.

It raises the possibility that Dodgers' fans could be forced to watch key players such as Andre Ethier and Matt Kemp walk away from the club before it has even reached the All-Star break.

Although the players union is "confident that payroll will be met," the potential remains that players could seek a move if the club's financial obligations are not met, MLB Players Association spokesman Greg Bouris told Bloomberg.

"If a player filed a default notice, the club would have 10 days from the filing date to cure the default," Bouris went on. "If they fail to cure the default, then the player can seek free agency."

Most observers believe, however, that Major League Baseball would intervene before a mass player exodus could ensue.

The New York Daily News reported Thursday that commissioner Bud Selig is poised to take control of the Dodgers if payroll cannot be met, setting the stage for a forced sale of the historic franchise.

Dodgers owner Frank McCourt has been urging Selig to approve a deal with FOX worth roughly $3 billion that includes an immediate $300 million cash injection for the club.

But Selig put the deal on hold while the league reviewed the storied franchise's financial status. He appointed former Texas Rangers president Tom Schieffer on April 25 to oversee the Dodgers' day-to-day financial operations.

According to the Daily News, Schieffer told Selig the $30 million loan McCourt secured from FOX last month for payroll covered only the two payments in April and the May 15 payroll, meaning the club will most likely fall short of its next payment due May 31.

The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday that the ballclub may not have enough cash to cover its expenses this month and will certainly face insolvency by July.

"It's a complicated web of companies, and we have to follow one dollar in the door and out the door," Schieffer told The Journal. "We have to figure out what's going on the best we can and get to facts everybody agrees on. Then the options will define themselves."

FOX is owned by News Corporation, which owns NewsCore.

Read more: Bloomberg