Dodgers Rumor: Magic Johnson Has Flight To Las Vegas Scheduled
Sometimes, being the news guy means you have to do some sleuth work. This is one of those times.
From our good friends over at Reddit/Dodgers, Magic Johnson may have a flight scheduled to Las Vegas tomorrow. Now, we all know why Magic would be headed to Las Vegas. It’s definitely not to hit the craps tables. No, that would be to meet with prized free agent Bryce Harper and his representatives.
Recently, Yahoo’s Jeff Passan reported that the Dodgers were in heavy pursuit of Harper. The report said that Magic Johnson was leading the recruitment efforts of the free agent outfielder. Once everyone got excited – Yahoo backtracked and said that Johnson had never been to Vegas for the purpose of Harper.
Magic Johnson says he did not go to Las Vegas to meet with Bryce Harper. Our original story has been updated to reflect this and includes a quote from Johnson: https://t.co/AfeLtkcxtK
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) December 4, 2018
However, things might have changed.
Magic Johnson’s Flight Log?
The thread appeared late Monday evening over on reddit, posted by a user ‘Doc-S’. This redditor seems to be a reputable poster with a lot of posts. He or she uncovered flight logs for Johnson’s plane that seem to indicate a trip to Sin City. Behold:
Here’s what our friend Doc-S says:
I was able to locate Magic’s private jet registered to his business. I then tried to access its historical flights, but couldn’t get that information unless I wanted to pay. But I was able to find that he has scheduled an early morning flight out of Van Nuys (shout out to Entourage) tomorrow to Las Vegas.
I wonder what a midweek flight to Vegas could mean for Magic?So Magic shot down Passan’s rumor because, well, maybe he technically hasn’t met with Bryce. Will he tomorrow? Or does he have business in Vegas?
The guy even worked in a shoutout to Entourage. He has to be credible, right? I’m only kidding.
We will continue to have developments, if any appear evident.
Analysis
It’s late at night – and I am breaking down a post on reddit. First things first: this is a grain of salt until it isn’t. This wouldn’t be the first time that a weird little nugget broke on a site like reddit and ended up having legs. Nevertheless, it reminds me of those offseason NFL coaching rumors where said coach is seen shopping for a home in said city. It reminds me of Lebron James enrolling his kids in schools in every state in America during his free agency tour. However, Magic Johnson might just be headed to Las Vegas tomorrow. And if he is – the odds of Bryce Harper becoming a Los Angeles Dodger increase.
Dodgers In Heavy Pursuit of Bryce Harper
The Dodgers have all the leverage over the other teams interested in Harper. Back to back NL pennants wins along with back to back World series appearances. None of the other teams have those enticing accomplishments. It’s not easy to make to the world series and to make two years in a row and fall short makes the pitch to Harper even more enticing for him. Harper knows the Dodgers need a bat that is a difference maker in the post season and this will all play into his decision. The big market of LA the weather, the incredible supporting fan base and being close to home are all a major plus for the Dodgers pitch over the other contending teams.
Methinks you guys are reading too much into the tea leaves here……..Dodgres need a catcher……….they need a second baseman………..they need one more starter……….they need two more bullpen arms…….outfielders? They have a plethora of those, so many they will probably have to trade one. One thing they don’t need……another .250 bat that hits for power.
The Winter Meetings start on Sunday. In Vegas. Maybe Johnson is going to meet with Harper. Maybe he’s heading out there to participate in an event that’ll be attended by 29 other teams. There’s really no “there” to this story.
Ownership group leave player negotiations to the baseball people. Ervin Johnson should not be negotiating with baseball agents and their players. If all the owners start dealing with personnel decisions chaos will happen. Should Billie Jean King be dealing with the Mets for a starting pitcher, should Robert Patton Jr. be dealing for a catcher, and should any other person in the ownership group dealings for players? I think not. Ervin Johnson should deal with the Lakers and Andrew Friedman do the negotiations for the Dodgers.