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Guber, Dodgers' Hollywood star, will own their Class AAA team

Bob Nightengale
Peter Guber is a co-owner of the Golden State Warriors and L.A. Dodgers.

It's Hollywood, right?

Where else could you find Peter Guber, chairman and CEO of Mandalay Entertainment, selling his Class AAA Oklahoma City RedHawks baseball team Wednesday to, well, himself, as minority owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers?

The Dodgers signed the official paperwork to purchase the RedHawks, Guber told USA TODAY Sports, with Guber owning 50% of the team and his Dodgers' partners owning the rest.

It's the first time the Dodgers have ever owned their own Triple-A affiliate in franchise history. They last owned a minor-league team in 1989 with the Class A Vero Beach Dodgers.

"It's not a no-brainer,'' Guber says, "but a big-brainer.''

Ok, considering Mandalay sold all five of its minor-league baseball franchises this year, including the Class A Dayton Dragons for a Class A record $41 million, how much did the Red Hawks go for in the sale?

"The seller and the buyer,'' Guber says, "will keep that confidential.''

Uh, that's you, he was reminded.

"You got it,'' Guber says. "No comment.''

That's Guber, who is the glitz behind the Dodgers' Hollywood curtain. He has produced films that have received more than 50 Academy Award nominations, earning in excess of $3 billion, with such hits as The Color Purple, Rain Man, Batman and Midnight Express.

This just so happens to be his latest hit.

You want to know why that serene organ music at Dodger Stadium was replaced by music blasting through the speakers? Look no further than Guber.

You want to know why the in-game entertainment at the Dodgers' games feels more like an NBA game than a baseball game? Guber, co-owner of the Golden State Warriors, is your man.

"I used to yell about that all of the time,'' Guber said of the Dodgers' serene atmosphere. "I love music. Music is the palate for anything. Why do you think people sing at soccer games? Hello.

"Remember, life is scored by music, and that's a critical part of the Dodgers. We talk about it all of the time. You've got to put the right music on, and cure it correctly.

"It's like [late Oakland Raiders owner] Al Davis used to tell me: "When you're winning, everybody is singing. When you're losing, everybody is crying. It all ends in i-n-g.

"You've just got to get the right words in front of it.''

Yes, the man is an entertainer, with the Dayton Dragons selling out every game for the last 15 years since moving to Dayton, Ohio. That's 1,051 consecutive sellouts, eclipsing the U.S. team record of 814 sellouts in a row by the Portland Trailblazers in 1977-1995.

"That's what we want in Oklahoma City, too,'' says Guber, knowing that his star outfielder, Matt Kemp, could sell a few tickets himself as an Oklahoma native. "Look, we really know our stuff. We think we'll build a really valuable asset, going first class with a minor-league team. I've been in this business for almost 20 years, and this is the crème de crème, the Dodgers and Oklahoma City.

"When you own a minor-league team, you can't control the winning and losing, but you do have the fan experience, the marketing, the food and beverage.

"My business is putting butts in the seats.

"It's similar to a movie theatre.

"'If the movie is lousy, nobody wants to see the movie.''

"We believe this will be perfect.''

And, yes, just another huge asset for the Dodgers' fat checkbook, considering Guber's track record with his recent minor-league franchise sales.

"What impresses me about this guy is all of the energy he has, he must not sleep,'' says Chicago White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf. "When you look at what he sold Dayton for, $41 million, that's incredible. No minor-league has ever been sold for close to that. He must do a hell of a job with promotions.

"Minor-league baseball is more a social event than anything else. Really, it's like Starbucks. You don't come in for the coffee, but you sit around and schmooze and talk to people. He's got that touch with his teams.''

Guber, who thought he had a deal nearly 20 years ago to buy the Oakland A's, says there's no reason why the Dodgers can't have the same love affair with their fans. The Dodgers sold a franchise record 35,000 season tickets, and have the highest attendance in baseball.

"People want a social experience, they want it to be a valued experience,'' Guber says. "Good content, good players, friendliness. To get fans to come to 81 games, that's a long time. You better have a compelling narrative.

"And just like music and movies and TV, you can have all of those skill sets, but you better have a good product, a unique product.''

"You've got to be good.''

And, yes, the Dodgers are awfully good this year, sitting atop the National League West, and vying for their first World Series appearance since winning it all in 1988.

Who knows, if they win, maybe a certain Hall of Fame manager can finally get off Guber's back.

"I used to wear my Yankees ring all of the time,'' Guber says, former owner of the Yankees Class A affiliate in Staten Island. "So one day I wore it to Dodger Stadium, and Tommy Lasorda says, "You can't' come in here anymore with that on.

"I told him, "Tommy, these things are hard to get. It's so hard to win a championship.'

"Tommy told me, "I don't give a damn, take it off. You're with the Dodgers now. I don't see that ring again.' So it's off now.

"But if we win it this year, I'll wear that Dodger ring in and around every orifice I have.

"You'll see.''

Yep, it's Hollywood, baby.


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