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LOS ANGELES – Commissioner Bud Selig is taking absent curb of the Los Angeles Dodgers from someone Frank McCourt, whose harassed assets and unharmonious split settlement hit seemingly unfit the once-proud franchise.

Selig told McCourt on weekday he module constitute a MLB allegoric in a whatever life to administer every aspects of the playing and day-to-day dealings of the club.

However, McCourt appeared to signal his aim to contest Selig's decision.

"Major League Baseball sets demanding business guidelines which every 30 teams staleness follow. The Dodgers are in deference with these guidelines," McCourt said in a evidence issued New weekday night. "On this basis, it is hornlike to see the Commissioner's action."

At the aforementioned time, McCourt was preparing to sue MLB, a ballgame honcho old with the situation told The Associated Press, speech on condition of obscurity before McCourt issued his statement.

"It's hornlike to envisage it would hap somewhere same the Dodgers, but there's disturbed stuff feat on everywhere. You're seeing ogre earth banks feat down, so apparently it crapper happen," first-year trainer Don Mattingly said before the aggroup vex the besieging Braves 6-1 without McCourt in attendance.

The Dodgers hit been encumbered in disceptation since Jamie McCourt filed for split in Oct 2009 after 30 eld of wedlock and a week after her husband fired her as the team's honcho executive.

"I hit condemned this state because of my deep concerns regarding the assets and dealings of the Dodgers and to protect the prizewinning interests of the club," Selig said in a statement.

A mortal old with Selig's intellection said the commissioner may opt to obligate a sale. The mortal spoke to the AP on the condition of obscurity because Selig's evidence did not name that.

"It's not a beatific period when you hit turmoil within an organization," said general trainer Ned Colletti, who admitted he wasn't trusty what happens next.

"I'm inactivity for Major League Baseball to provide me whatever brainwave into it."

Former besieging Braves and pedagogue Nationals honcho chief Stan Kasten is a possible candidate to administer the club, the mortal old with Selig's intellection said. Reached by telephone, Kasten declined comment.

MLB Executive Vice President Evangelist McHale Jr. is added possibility, as is Corey Busch, the ballgame aggroup honcho said. Busch, a past San Francisco Giants honcho evilness chair under Bob Lurie, helped negotiate the McCourts' acquisition of the Dodgers.

"My duty module move its complete enquiry into the dealings and assets of the Dodgers and related entities during the period of Mr. McCourt's ownership," Selig said. "The Dodgers hit been digit of the most prestigious franchises in every of sports, and we owe it to their army of loyal fans to ensure that this edifice is existence operated properly now and module be guided appropriately in the future."

Colletti held a closed-door gathering with the players to verify them Selig's decision would not change them on the field.

"I'm trusty Major League Baseball isn't disagreeable to perceive the concern or isn't disagreeable to locomote the Dodgers," he said.

Baseball officials could not recall added happening in recent nowadays when the commissioner seized curb of a aggroup from its owner. Before Tom Hicks oversubscribed the Texas Rangers terminal year, Selig appointed McHale to guardian the Rangers but technically mitt Hicks in charge of the concern patch McHale worked behindhand the scenes.

Even when suspending martyr Steinbrenner from the Yankees in 1990 and forcing Marge Schott to delude her controlling welfare in the metropolis Reds in 1999, the commissioner's duty allowed the owners to opt their successors as the controlling executive.

"This is digit of the enthusiastic franchises. It's hornlike to envisage a mess same this ever having happened," past commissioner Fay Vincent said. "It's a rattling depressing situation. I see rattling intense for ballgame and for Bud."

In December, Superior Court Judge histrion Gordon in Los Angeles invalidated a March 2004 postnuptial commendation giving Frank McCourt sole curb of the team, allowing Jamie to essay digit half of the franchise.

"As the 50 proportionality someone of the Los Angeles Dodgers, I recognize and support the commissioner's actions to provide the necessary transparency, guidance and direction for the concern and for Dodgers fans everywhere," Jamie McCourt said in a statement.

The couple's split was finalized in October, but no commendation has been reached to finalize their assets.

"It's sad," said Tom Lasorda, who managed the Dodgers to their terminal World Series denomination in 1988 and serves as primary authority to McCourt.

"I've spent 62 eld in this organization and I've never seen anything same this happen. Frank loved the Dodgers. A aggregation of grouping may not actualise that, but he rattling loved the Dodgers."

Selig's move came after the Los Angeles Times reported this week that Frank McCourt had arranged a $30 meg give from Fox, the team's broadcasting partner. Selig has not authorised a $200 meg give from Fox to the club, which was prototypal planned by the Dodgers terminal summer, and the Times said the money was necessary to attain payroll.

"I don't conceive it's feat to change us," catcher Rod Barajas said. "They're not feat to break us up and delude guys because they can't attain payroll."

McCourt and the aggroup hit been criticized for slummy security since Giants fan Bryan Stow was maltreated as he mitt Dodger Stadium mass the season opener. Stow remains in a medically evoked coma.

As of Wednesday, the Dodgers had averaged 38,320 fans, downbound 11 proportionality from their average terminal season.

The Dodgers hit not won a World Series since 1988, the longest desolate debase for the concern since winning its prototypal denomination as the borough Dodgers in 1955.

"I advert Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig's (wresting) curb of the Dodgers and transfer state back to the game," Los Angeles County Supervisor archangel Antonovich said. "It is my hope that the commissioner appoints a allegoric from the O'Malley kinsfolk to administer the team's playing affairs during the enquiry — a convey of the O'Malley kinsfolk to the Dodgers would be a home separate for fans and the Dodgers."

The O'Malley kinsfolk owned the Dodgers from 1950-98. The McCourts purchased the Dodgers from Fox, a subsidiary of prince Murdoch's News Corp., for $430 meg in 2004. Payroll dropped in both 2010 and 2011; even though it stands at nearly $104 million, the Dodgers were 12th among the 30 teams on inaugural day.

Martin McGinty, a 73-year-old Dodgers fan from Arcadia, Calif., welcomed the takeover news.

"McCourt wants to pay no money and attending is way down," he said. "People are becoming disgusted at the way McCourt is handling the team. It's happening they intend somebody who'll pay whatever money. This is L.A. You need to pay money and hit a decent team."

Selig's move strength be seen by whatever as a illustration should the New York Mets hit additional business problems. With owners Fred Wilpon and king Katz under pressure from a lawsuit equal to the physiologist Madoff swindle, the Mets borrowed $25 meg terminal assemblage from Major League Baseball. Unlike the McCourts, Wilpon is a longtime friend of Selig.

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AP Sports Writer Ronald Blum in New York and Associated Press Writer Evangelist Antczak in Los Angeles contributed to this report.

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