L.A. moguls stay on sidelines in sale of hometown Dodgers.

L.A. has no shortage of deep-pocketed sports fans who could have bought the Dodgers from News Corp.--Ed Roski Jr., Run Burkle, Magic Johnson, to name just a few.

But for one reason or another, local interest was sparse in the nearly year-long auction, which was won in October by Boston land owner Frank McCourt and appeared as of last week on the verge of being approved by Major League Baseball.

While a McCourt associate said that he would move to town if Major League Baseball approves his reported $430 million deal to purchase the team--much of it funded with loans from Bank of America--the Dodgers could have easily ended up with a homegrown owner.

"There are plenty of guys in town who could buy a team, some of them without much need for leverage," said Marc Ganis, the president of Chicago-based sports consultancy SportsCorp Ltd. "So it's interesting that almost none of them showed up."

Why so little local interest?

Some of L.A.'s wealthy have no interest in sports. That group includes "Mighty Morphin Power Rangers" impresario Haim Saban, who prefers music to bats and balls, and billionaire investor Eli Broad, who focuses on art.

But another factor could be the Dodgers' financial problems. The team loses at least $20 million a year, depending on how the numbers are figured, and it sports one of the biggest payrolls in baseball. Some baseball sources estimate it could take at least three years before the team could become profitable. That was enough to turn off Univision Communications Inc. Chairman A. Jerrold Perenchio, according to company spokesman Stephanie Pillersdorf.

Edward Roski Jr., the City of Industry real estate magnate who owns a stake in both the Kings and Lakers and was part of an unsuccessful effort for an NFL franchise, passed on a chance to buy the Dodgers in 1998, when baseball heir Peter O'Malley sold the team for $330 million to News Corp.

This time around, he wasn't even approached. "'It's a Los Angeles institution and I would have given some thought to buying it if I was called," said Roski.

Among other local possibilities: supermarket investor Burkle, who has a 30 percent stake in the Pittsburgh Penguins hockey team, television producer Tom Werner, who teamed tip with former Florida Marlins owner John Henry last year to buy the Boston Red Sox for $700 million, and hotel tycoon Lewis Wolff, a friend of Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig. Wolff once owned part of the St. Louis Blues hockey team and is currently negotiating to buy part of the Oakland A's.

Just one local player made a public bid for the team. But the offer from hardball apartment baron Alan Casden fell apart after questions came up about his various legal scrapes.

While Major League officials would rather approve an owner with local ties, other considerations matter more. Money and potential conflicts of interest, such as ownership of a cable network, are considerations.

That was the case during the bid for the Boston Red Sox auction last year when McCourt's bid for his home team was lower than that of several other contenders including cable mogul Charles Dolan (brother of the owner of the Cleveland Indians) and the successful Henry/Werner offer.

Out-of-town ownership is not that uncommon. Phoenix businessman Arte Moreno acquired the Anaheim Angels, while New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner lives in Tampa.

There is a chance that a local could still end up with a piece of the Dodgers if McCourt completes the deal. After buying a franchise, many owners will sell off small stakes to recoup their losses.

McCourt may be after more. According to one source, McCourt approached one possible investor for a $50 million investment. But that investor took a pass after McCourt proposed his terms.

A spokesman for McCourt, Duffy Jennings, declined to comment.