In this week’s Sports Illustrated, we get some interesting quotes from New York Mets owner Fred Wilpon who admits the team is in financial dire straits. He’s talks about his relationship with convicted Ponzi schemer Bernard Madoff and where the team is heading. Wilpon also reveals that he offered Madoff a stake in the Mets. Some interesting stuff as the issue is released today.
In A Candid Interview With Sports Illustrated, Mets Owner Talks Madoff, Picard Lawsuit and Payroll Mistakes
Wilpon Reveals that Madoff Turned Down an Ownership Stake in the Team!
(NEW YORK – May 24, 2011) – In the May 30, 2011, issue of Sports Illustrated—on newsstands Wednesday—New York Mets owner Fred Wilpon shares with senior writer Tom Verducci his most detailed and personal accounts of the Madoff scandal and the Irving Picard lawsuit. Wilpon acknowledges the $1 billion lawsuit could cost him his ownership of the Mets. Says Wilpon: “I think the club became in jeopardy when he filed (for) this billion dollars. That’s when I decided to sell part of the club and maintain control in our operations and share the partnership with somebody.”
Former New York governor Mario Cuomo is serving as mediator between Picard and Wilpon. Wilpon says he is willing to discuss a settlement regarding the fictitious profits which Picard has valued at $295 million but not the $700 million in principal that he and his partners invested with Madoff in the six years before his arrest but according to Wilpon:
- “Governor Cuomo has not been able to at this stage convince (Picard) that the 700 is not going to be obtainable.”
Investments made with Madoff provided a steady return of 10-12% to the Sterling Partners. When asked about the too-good-too-be-true theory, Wilpon responds:
- “Not by Madoff’s formula, if you believe his formula of what he did with puts and calls. Markets going this way and markets going that way didn’t affect the basket of stocks he was allegedly buying. We had no feeling that that was unusual.”
In the summer of 2002, after Wilpon became the sole owner of the Mets, he reached out to four or five “extremely close friends” to offer them a piece of the team. One of those men was Bernie Madoff who turned down the offer. Looking back on it, Wilpon recalls:
- “Bernie didn’t want to be in the public eye, which I can now understand more.”
As evidence of their trust in Madoff, Wilpon and his Sterling Partners devised a plan based on their investments with Madoff to buy out Bobby Bonilla in 1999. Instead of paying Bonilla the 5.9 million he was owed for the 2000 season, the Mets deferred his payment until 2011, at which point he is to be paid $1.19 million dollars annually for the next 25 years, or $29.8 million in total. The payout is based on the return Bonilla would have received had he invested the money at an interest rate of 8%. The Mets planned to invest that money with Madoff and earn their usual 10-12% interest, and actually make money off of Bonilla’s buy out. In fact, the Mets used the Madoff investments to fund deferred payments several times, making them to pitchers Bret Saberhagen and Tom Glavine, among others. Wilpon says:
- “You can fault us for that. The judgment, in retrospect, was not good. We trusted a man who turned out not to be trustworthy.”
During a 1992 meeting he had with Ike Sorkin, an attorney for two Florida accountants who worked with Madoff, Wilpon watched Sorkin write a $400 million check to settle a lawsuit by the SEC charging the accountants with selling unregistered securities. The SEC blamed the accountants and did not accuse Madoff of wrong doing. Wilpon states:
- “The SEC said he’s absolutely clean as a whistle. They admonished the guys down there in Florida. Nothing with Bernie.”
When asked how difficult it was to hear of the suicide of Bernie’s son Mark Madoff—a childhood friend of his son and Mets COO Jeff, Wilpon breaks down and says:
- “Oh, my God, I loved that kid.”
Fred Wilpon wonders what would happen if he saw Bernie Madoff today:
- “If I saw Bernie, would I want to kick him or punch him? No, no. I’ve heard some people say, ‘that son of a bitch, I’d like to kill him.’ That’s not how I feel. I’ve tried to temper that because I’ve got to be focused on getting where we need to and putting this behind us.”
And we have more from this week’s Sports Illustrated below.
On the Cover: The NBA Conference Finalists Get Down and Dirty
What Loyalty to Bernie Madoff is Costing Fred Wilpon and the Mets
Time for Tiki Barber to Get Back at His Critics
Puck Possession Is the Key to Winning the Stanley Cup
Inside the Evolution of the Indy 500 After 100 Years(NEW YORK – May 25, 2011) – The May 30, 2011, issue of Sports Illustrated—on newsstands now—features Miami’s LeBron James and Chicago’s Joakim Noah pursuing a loose ball in the Eastern Conference Finals on the cover. It is the 13th cover appearance for James, which ties him for 14th all time with New York Yankees Hall of Famer Mickey Mantle.
FRED WILPON PAYS THE PRICE – TOM VERDUCCI (@TOMVERDUCCI)
New York Mets owner Fred Wilpon shares detailed and personal accounts of the Bernard Madoff scandal and Irving Picard lawsuit with senior writer Tom Verducci. Wilpon acknowledges the $1 billion lawsuit could cost him ownership of the Mets, saying (page 64): “I think the club became in jeopardy when he filed [for] this billion dollars. That’s when I decided to sell part of the club and maintain control in our operations and share the partnership with somebody.”Wilpon says the Mets “are bleeding cash” and acknowledges that they stand to lose as much as $70 million this year.
In the summer of 2002, after Wilpon became the sole owner of the Mets, he reached out to four or five “extremely close friends” to offer them a piece of the team. One of those men was Bernie Madoff who turned down the offer. Looking back on it, Wilpon recalls: “Bernie didn’t want to be in the public eye, which I can now understand more.”
To read the full online version of Fred Wilpon Pays the Price, click here.
On the Tablets: A Sports Illustrated audio podcast interview with Tom Verducci.
TIKI BARBER GETS REAL – L. JON WERTHEIM (@jon_wertheim)
Former Pro Bowl running back Tiki Barber seemed destined for success after football, but a failed television career and a scandal shattered his post football ambitions. Now 36, he attempts an NFL comeback and to repair his bruised image (page 46).Former teammate Michael Strahan says: “When people are like, ‘What’s up with Tiki?’ I don’t even know where to begin. You can be critical, even of your old team, but people felt Tiki was malicious. You take that, and then the team you criticized wins the Super Bowl? That can be hard to recover from. Especially in New York.”
Says Roman Oben, a Giants tackle from 1996 to ’99 (page 46): “A lot of players want to be taken seriously as more than a football player. But we’d beat the Cowboys and fly home. Guys are yelling, playing cards and watching movies. Tiki’s sitting there, legs crossed, reading Wuthering Heights or whatever. Come on. Some guys let you know how bad they had it growing up. Tiki wanted you to know the opposite: Hey, I’m not from the hood.”
To read the full online version of Tiki Barber Gets Real, click here.
On the Tablets: Exclusive video of Barber’s workouts as he attempts an NFL comeback.
EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS: BULLYING THE BULLS – IAN THOMSEN (@SI_IanThomsen)
For all the attention paid to James and the other two members of Miami’s Big Three, it was the physical play of Udonis Haslem that set the Heat back on track against Chicago after he missed all but 13 games this season. Says Dwyane Wade (page 36): “He’s the heartbeat of our team. Our team is that much better with U-D being back.”To read the full online version of Bullying the Bulls, click here.
On the Tablets: Video highlights from the Bulls-Heat series.
WESTERN CONFERENCE FINALS: A BEAUTIFUL RIVALRY – PHIL TAYLOR (@SI_PhilTaylor)
Oklahoma City and Dallas are perfect foils. The Thunder is a young team and new to the NBA elite while the experienced Mavericks have yet to fulfill their championship hopes. These teams are not only in the middle of a down-and-dirty playoff series but also at the beginning of what promises to be an interstate rivalry for years to come. Says Kevin Durant, a former Texas Longhorn (page 40): “Anytime you have an Oklahoma team against a Texas team you’re going to have that extra little bit of intensity from the fans. That’s just the way it is down here.”To read the full online version of The Beginning of a Beautiful Rivalry, click here.
On the Tablets: Video highlights from the Western Conference finals and hot spots of the five best rivalries in NBA history.
NHL PLAYOFFS: KEEP BOTH EYES ON THE PUCK – BRIAN CAZENEUVE
Nobody in the NHL can agree on just how to quantify puck possession. But everybody knows that hockey’s most elusive statistic is essential to winning the Stanley Cup. Says Tampa Bay Lightning G.M. Steve Yzerman (page 60): “Without the red line and with relaxed rules on icing, the puck can go from behind your net into the other team’s end in an instant, so there’s not much playing in the neutral zone anymore. The more you have the puck, the more you can attack and generate offense. That’s the way I believe you defend a lead now: Attack and make the other team defend.”To read the full online version of Keep Both Eyes on the Puck, click here.
On the Tablets: A closer look at the leading contenders from each of the four remaining teams to take home the Conn Smythe Trophy: Martin St. Louis (Lightning), Joe Thornton (Sharks), Tim Thomas (Bruins) and Ryan Kesler (Canucks).
100 YEARS OF THE INDY 500 – CHARLES LEERHSEN
This year’s Indianapolis 500 marks 100 years since the inaugural race. The Indy 500 has evolved into a far safer and more streamlined event over the years, but can it regain its former roar? Sports Illustrated takes a closer look at some of the memorable moments that have been made on the 2.5-mile oval at Indianapolis Motor Speedway as well as how the cars at the hallowed Brickyard have evolved since Ray Harroun won the 1911 race in a Marmon Wasp (page 52).To see Danica Patrick answer a question from a Sports Illustrated Facebook fan, click here. To read the full online version of 100 Years of the Indy 500, click here.
On the Tablets: Nine photos of past action from the Indy 500.
THE PREAKNESS: LEADING FROM THE FRONT – TIM LAYDEN (@SITimLayden)
By pushing the pace from the start, Shackleford never allowed Animal Kingdom to relax as he did in the Kentucky Derby. In holding off the 2–1 favorite by a half length on the backstretch, Shackleford defied the racetrack wisdom that a fast pace benefits fast-finishing horses (like Animal Kingdom) by wearing out the leaders. Says Shackleford’s trainer, Dale Romans (page 44): “When the pace is slow, you keep closers in the race.”To read the full online version of Leading From the Front, click here.
On the Tablets: A slideshow of Sports Illustrated’s best photos from the Preakness.
POINT AFTER: END OF THE STORY – JOE POSNANSKI (@JPosnanski)
During an interview on Thursday with senior writer Joe Posnanki, Dick Ebersol summed up his career thusly: “The most important thing to me was to tell stories.” Ebersol saw past the excess hype, one-liners and camera angles of today’s sports media landscape and focused on captivating narratives. With Ebersol’s departure from NBC, fans may have seen the last giant of network television sports. Speaking with Posnanski shortly after Ebersol’s resignation, Al Michaels said (page 74): “I think Dick saw his role as 75 percent creative and 25 percent business. And I think things were changing so that [the ratio] was going to be the other way around…. Dick took chances. I don’t know who will take those chances now.”To read the full online version of End of the Story, click here.
SCORECARD: TOO MUCH INFORMATION? – Jack McCallum
This week marks the national release of These Guys Have All the Fun, an inside look at the lives of the talent as ESPN since the network’s inception in 1979. As ESPN continues to grow, its audience has become more invested with its anchors, which raises the question: How fair is to scrutinize the private lives of people delivering the news? (page 12)To read the full online version of Too Much Information?, click here.
THIS WEEK’S FACES IN THE CROWD (page 23)
• Anna McClung (Gate City, Va.) – Soccer
• Kyle Winter (San Antonio) – Track and Field
• Adrienne Monka (Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.) – Softball
• Nyko Bodnar (Long Beach, Calif.) – Diving
• Grace Gaeng (Bel Air, Md.) – Lacrosse
• Paul Karmas (Queens, N.Y.) – BaseballFollow Faces in the Crowd on Twitter @SI_Faces.
INSIDE THE WEEK IN SPORTS (page 24)
- Boxing: Golden Oldie – At the record age of 46, a revived (and aggressive!) Bernard Hopkins took the light heavyweight title. (Chris Mannix, @ChrisMannixSI)
- Golf: Grandfathered In – After a crushing playoff loss at the Players, David Toms rebounded with an emotional win in honor of his late grandfather at the Colonial. (Gary Van Sickle, @GaryVanSickle)
- Soccer: The Best Ever? – Barcelona goes for the accolade of “best club ever” in Saturday’s Champions League final. Here’s how Manchester United can stop them. (Jen Chang, @JenChang88)
- Baseball: Bigs Break – They’re minor leaguers now, but these five players will be major contributors soon. (Joe Sheehan, @joe_sheehan)
THIS WEEK ON THE TABLETS
- SI Digital Bonus: Game 6 – Five months after Game 6 of the 1986 World Series, Peter Gammons analyzed the might-have-beens and should-have-dones with the players and managers of the Mets and the Red Sox.
That’s all. A long post, I know. Over 2,300 hundred words. But I do it for you.
