Bring Back the Los Angeles Rams Hasa Familiar Ring To It

Bring back the Los Angeles Rams has a familiar ring to it, just like the recent campaign to bring back the Hartford Whalers.  A recent Facebook page has taken hold called Bring Back the Los Angeles Rams.  With over 3200 likes on Facebook, the group is hoping that the Rams become the franchise expected to move to Los Angeles when Farmers Field opens in God knows when (Actually 2016 if construction begins on time).  In fact, it has been reported that the Memorandum of Understanding between the City and AEG requires that a contract to bring a team to Los Angeles be put into place PRIOR to construction, which means that if construction were to begin on time, a team would need to relocate to LA in time for the 2012 Season.

But the Rams might be the most viable choice - over the Minnesota Vikings, the Jacksonvill Jaguars, the Oakland Raiders and event the San Diego Chargers.

Interestingly enough, the City of St. Louis must provide the Rams with a stadium improvement plan (including how the plan will be financed) by February 2, 2012 in order to comply with the lease provisions that were negotiated between teh parties when the team moved into St Louis back in 1995.  Presuming the Rams reject the plan, the team must put forth a counter proposal to the plan by May 1, 2012.  And if the counterproposal is rejected by the City (who would have to find a way to pay for it – no way it's approved in this economic climate), then the parties go to arbitration with the likely result being a voiding of the Lease with the City.  Now of course the sides would have to negotiate in good faith, and the City of St Louis could stall discussions so a move to LA is not in the bag already, but you have to admit that the timing works out pretty well for an LA move.

That would make at least 3200 people very happy.

Islanders are Going Where on August 2?

The New York Islanders might become the next Hartford Whalers, or the next Montreal Expos or the next Seattle Supersonics if the bond referendum to be voted on on August 1, 2011 goes poorly for the team.  It is that bond referendum that will determine if the Islanders are going to get a new stadium next to the Nassau Colliseum and if the vote fails to pass the new debt, then the Islanders will be forced to look for a new home - or so the scare tactics will teach us. The belief is that without a new stadium, the team will no longer be able to compete in the NHL and will have to move.  Although I don't know how a new stadium will suddenly make the team more attractive than it is now.

The question is, where will the Islanders go?  Quebec is having continuous problems getting funding for its own arena.  No team wants to move back to Hartford since the corproate base is too small and the rights fees are too complex with the Bruins and the Rangers.  Maybe Cleveland, Kansas City or Seattle?  Seattle might make the most sense geographically, since it would automatically create a rivalry with the Vancouver Canucks (who I'm sure are chomping at the bit to create a bitter rivalry) but would lead to even more realignment as the Winnipeg Jets move to the Western Conference this year.  Cleveland might make sense since the team would stay in the Eastern Conference.  But with a team right down the street in Columbus?  Probably not going to happen.

Kansas City is not a viable choice.  The City has failed to support most of its professional teams except for the Chiefs, since this part of the Midwest is tied to football.  It will likely be just like the Oakland A's who first moved to Kansas City in the 1960's after 60 years in Philadelphia. 

One possibility may be Houston.  The former WHA standout the Houston Aeros proved that professional hockey can thrive in Texas despite Dallas having a team as well.  Hoston is a huge metropolis with numerous opportunities.  Perhaps this is the place that the team should look at if they are forced to leave Long Island.

Former Rams Owner Georgia Frontiere is Still one of the Most Hated Owners

On a recent list of the most hated owners in Professional Sports, the late Georgia Frontiere was named the 7th most despised owner.  Does she deserve it?  Sure, she inherited a mjority of the Los Angeles Rams after her husband Carroll Rosenblum drowned mysteriously in 1979.  And yes, she consummated and directed the team's moves, first to Anaheim in 1980, then to her birthplace in St. Louis in 1995.  But does she deserve the label as one of the most hated owners in sports?  Let's look at some of the details behind the moniker given to her.

The 1980 move from Los Angeles to Anaheim was actually brokered by her late husband, the aforementioned Rosenblum, who was lured by an attractive compensation package and a newer stadium in Anaheim.  After Rosenbloom died, Frontiere merely closed the deal.  Interestingly enough, Rosenblum traded his franchise in Baltimore to acquire the Los Angeles Rams franchise.  With wheeling and dealing in his blood, it's clear that this move was Rosenbloom's brainchild and not an idea planted in his head by Frontiere.

The 1995 move was brought about, not by Frontiere's personal considerations and her yearning to move elsewhere, but by economic considerations.  Not dissimilar to the reasons brought about by the NFL's current Lockout.  Attendance in Anaheim had declined over 25% from its height in the early 1980's.  And because the team could not sell out its home games, the games were ultimately blacked out in the area.  A generation of fans really didn't have an opportunity to root for the team.  Unfortunately, the Raiders at the same time became the popular team in the area with kids and adults alike.  Couple this growing lack of interest with St. Louis' profit guarantees from season ticket sales and a favorable lease and it made a lot of sense to make the move.  If Hartford put together the same deal for Frontiere that it did for Robert Kraft, we might be looking at the NFL's version of the Hartford Whalers. 

Granted, Frontiere grew up in St. Louis.  However, she was a low level entertainer who constantly traveled with her Mother to perform shows.  All accounts suggest that St. Louis is where she slept and not where she lived.  On top of that, Frontiere moved to California shortly after high school to try to make it as an entertainer.  And upon her move to Los Angeles after Rosenbloom acquired the franchise, she became a leading socialite in Hollywood, contstantly entertaining friends and acquaintenances at her home and at Home Games.  There was really no reason for her to move from a personal perspective.  My feeling is that if the crowds came out, and she got the stadium she wanted built in Los Angeles, the Rams would have stayed in the area.

Frontiere, joins the list of owners who moved their teams because they wanted to make more money (or stop losing money).  It's just business.  She has nothing on Marge Schott and Clay Bennett, in my opinion.