"Joe has been an invaluable resource for me and all of us at Major League Baseball this year," Selig said in a statement. "I understand his desire to pursue an opportunity in Los Angeles. Joe has been a lifelong friend and I know that will continue in the future."

That’s what Commissioner Bud Selig had to say in regards to Joe Torre stepping down as MLB’s executive vice-president of baseball operations on Wednesday and joining a group attempting to buy the Los Angeles Dodgers. But if you read between the lines, it sounds more like:

“Joe Torre adds immediate legitimacy to the group headed by real estate developer Rick Caruso. He is my hand-picked choice to own the Los Angeles Dodgers.”

That’s right folks; I’m calling “Shenanigans” on the whole deal. If I am any of the other potential bidders, a list which currently includes Mark Cuban, Orel Hershisher and Steve Garvey, Peter O’Malley, Magic Johnson, et al, I’m crying foul as well.

It would seem to me that the field of potential buyers is already well-formed and financially backed. The addition of Torre to a group lead by a real estate developer (ahem, McCourt, ahem) doesn’t do anything to back-up the legitimacy of the process. All it does is signal that Bud Selig and the other cronies at the country club want another good-old-boy after watching McCourt tarnish the image.

To me, there are already two worthwhile groups here; the one lead by Magic Johnson and former Washington Nationals president Stan Kasten, and the one lead by Mark Cuban. Both Cuban and Johnson have strong business acumens, not to mention immeasurable competitiveness. Both groups would have the flash and drive to give the Dodgers the visible ownership that it truly needs. Both would do what it takes to make the team and the baseball culture viable again, especially with Arte Moreno setting up Anaheim like Ellis Island and taking on all the poor, tired, and huddled masses of Dodgers fans wanting to see the best show in town.

All Cuban has done is make one of the sorriest franchises in NBA history into a perennial contender and defending NBA champion. All Johnson has done was captivated the city of Los Angeles and the mass market of fans outside of the area and turned the Lakers into a national phenomenon.

Yet, we stand here this week and hear how Bud’s special friend has decided to throw his hat in the ring. Sure, I understand that Torre has his L.A. ties, having managed the team from 2008-10, but three years with a team doesn’t make you a staple of the market. That alone would justify Manny Ramirez trying to buy the team and moving it to “Mannywood”.

No, Torre is here because Selig needed him here. They need to control the Los Angeles circus when bids are submitted on January 23^rd. They cannot allow a free-thinker like Cuban to walk into the ring like Al Czervik and take over Bushwood. No, Bud needs an inside man to make sure they have the anti-McCourt in place, someone who will follow the book on ownership to the letter and will roll over like a good dog when Major League Baseball wants him to.

Shame on you Joe Torre. Shame on you Bud Selig. And shame on any of the sheep that don’t see the wool being pulled over their eyes because there is a wolf in the herd.