Frank McCourt used cash advance to cover team payroll

Last week there were questions as to whether Frank McCourt could cover the team's payroll and keep his tenuous hold on ownership of the Los Angeles Dodgers. After stories surfaced over the weekend that McCourt would be able cover paychecks, the next obvious question was...how?

According to ESPN the Magazine's Molly Knight, it may have come from some creative account management.

Current team sponsors were contacted and offered discounts on their annual bills and luxury box stadium seats in exchange for cash up front, according to two sources. It is not known which sponsors took the offer, or the depth of discount they were given.

If true, it continues a pattern of the organization offering deep discounts to try and generate any kind of revenue. On Monday, the team advertised $1 Dodger Dogs in an effort to fill the stadium...on Memorial Day, no less. It helped somewhat as the team announced its largest walk-up crowd of the season with 4,200 buying tickets at the gate. But overall, a fan boycott has led to a nearly 17 percent decline in attendance compared to the same point last year.

More importantly, it puts in serious doubt McCourt's ability to cover the next payroll which comes on June 15th. With a host of legal issues closing in on McCourt and Major League Baseball already keeping a close watch on the franchise's operations, it seems to be a matter of time before the keys are taken away from him permanently.