MLB to oversee Dodgers Financial and Operations Problems

04/20/2011 5:04 PM ET
MLB statement regarding the Dodgers

Baseball Commissioner Allan H. (Bud) Selig issued the following statement today regarding the Los Angeles Dodgers:

"Pursuant to my authority as Commissioner, I informed Los Angeles Dodgers owner Frank McCourt today that I will appoint a representative to oversee all aspects of the business and the day-to-day operations of the Club. I have taken this action because of my deep concerns regarding the finances and operations of the Dodgers and to protect the best interests of the Club, its great fans and all of Major League Baseball. My office will continue its thorough investigation into the operations and finances of the Dodgers and related entities during the period of Mr. McCourt's ownership. I will announce the name of my representative in the next several days.

"The Dodgers have been one of the most prestigious franchises in all of sports, and we owe it to their legion of loyal fans to ensure that this club is being operated properly now and will be guided appropriately in the future."

Selig appoints Schieffer to monitor Dodgers
By Ken Gurnick / MLB.com | 04/25/11 3:19 PM ET

MIAMI -- J. Thomas Schieffer, former president of the Texas Rangers, has been selected to monitor the Dodgers franchise, Commissioner Bud Selig announced Monday.

Schieffer will be Selig's representative in oversight of the day-to-day operations, business and finances of the club and all related entities.The team's finances have come into question since the divorce of Dodgers owner and chairman Frank McCourt from Jamie McCourt, his wife of 29 years, who also served as CEO of the club until 2009.

"We are very fortunate to have someone of Tom Schieffer's stature monitor the operations of the Los Angeles Dodgers on behalf of Major League Baseball," Selig said in a release. "Tom is a distinguished public servant who has represented the nation with excellence and has demonstrated extraordinary leadership throughout his career. The many years that he spent managing the operations of a successful franchise will benefit the Dodgers and Major League Baseball as a whole. I am grateful for Tom's acceptance of this role."

Schieffer was an investor in the ownership group headed by George W. Bush and Rusty Rose that purchased the Rangers in 1989. He was club president from 1991-99 and general partner from 1994-98. He also was in charge of development of The Ballpark in Arlington.

"To me, for that role, he is the perfect guy," said former Rangers general manager Tom Grieve, who was dismissed from that role after 11 seasons, in 1994, by Schieffer, who then hired him as the team's television analyst. "He's bright, he loves the game, he's got an incredible attention to detail, he's got passion and he's a tireless worker. There is nothing about that job that won't appeal to him or he won't do a great job at. Whoever came up with his name, it was a brilliant idea. If I was one one of the people with the Dodgers who were in that predicament, I would feel very good that Tom was the guy being named to lead that organization."

Schieffer, 63, is an attorney specializing in oil and gas matters and investment management. He served three terms as a Democrat in the Texas House of Representatives, was the U.S. Ambassador to Australia from 2001-05 and was the U.S. Ambassador to Japan from 2005-09. He was honored by the Department of Defense with its Distinguished Public Service Medal, the military's highest civilian award.

The Rangers won three division titles in his tenure there, and he served on several MLB committees and boards, including the 1999 Blue Ribbon Task Force on Baseball Economics.

Ken Gurnick is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.