Jared Kushner has withdrawn from the Los Angeles Dodgers ownership sweepstakes, leaving seven candidates left.

Kushner, the owner and publisher of the New York Observer and son-in-law of Donald Trump, submitted a bid with a financial structure Major League Baseball declined to approve, according to a person familiar with the sale process but not authorized to discuss it.

Kushner was invited to consider restructuring his bid or joining with another group, the person said. He instead withdrew his bid.

Peace, bro.

Speaking of the ownership situation, Steve Dilbeck had a nice find, as he wrote about Darren Rovell‘s thoughts about the team being overvalued.

Will he get the bid he dreams of? Stay tuned. But if the new owner is dropping $1.5 billion to $2 billion, sports business writer Darren Rovell of CNBC.com said there is no money to be made on the team.

Rovell said the team itself is still valued at $800 million and the property from $200 million to $300 million. Some have claimed this is less about buying the Dodgers than the TV rights.

Wrote Rovell: “Some will say it’s in the TV money, but it’s not there either. A deal with a network would yield about $150 million a year, but if the Dodgers start a regional sports network, they’ll likely be sharing at least 25% of the overall revenue, which would affect the rights fee.”

If it’s a vanity buy, it is one crazy purchase. And then you have to wonder about the impact down the line.

“If a bid is a stupid bid, do you think the owner wants to pump more money into the team?” Rovell asked. “If a bid is fiscally irresponsible, does it necessarily increase the value of all teams? No. It’s just an outlier.”

Besides the parking lots, my worry now is that the new ownership will be so focused on making their money back that the money won’t be spent on the team.

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The team recently signed two players in right-handed pitcher Blake Johnson and second baseman Brandon Mims.

The Dodgers originally selected Blake Johnson in the second round of the ’04 draft, then packaged him in a deal to the Royals for Elmer Dessens in July ’06. Johnson pitched in the Royals and Rockies organizations last year.

The Blue Jays signed Brandon Mims for $230,000 out of the ninth round of the ’10 draft, but they released the Carrollton, Texas, product last September after he did not play during the season. He went 1-for-2 in the Gulf Coast League in ’10, and that’s the extend of his pro experience.

I’d honestly like to know what the personal reasons were for Brandon Mims being released, but for now he seems like a solid addition to the system at a minimal price.

Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times reported earlier today that the Los Angeles Dodgers ownership sweepstakes is down to seven contestants.

I would have wrote about this earlier but napping was of greater importance.

Of the nine parties still in contention last week, the two eliminated Monday were Michael Heisley, owner of the NBA’s Memphis Grizzlies; and Tony Ressler, a minority investor in the Milwaukee Brewers and co-founder of Los Angeles-based Ares Management.

The remaining bidders include groups led by Johnson and veteran baseball executive Stan Kasten; Connecticut investment king Steven Cohen and longtime Los Angeles agent Arn Tellem; Stanley Gold and the family of the late Roy Disney; and New York media executive Leo Hindery in partnership with Tom Barrack, chairman of Santa Monica-based Colony Capital.

St. Louis Rams owner Stan Kroenke, Beverly Hills-based real estate developer Alan Casden and Jared Kushner, owner and publisher of the New York Observer and son-in-law of Donald Trump, also remain in contention.

I honestly don’t care much about the two eliminated, maybe I would if I had any time to get an impression of them, but I didn’t.

It does worry me though that out of the seven groups there are three I don’t want (Steven Cohen/Jared Kushner/Stan Kroenke), three I don’t care about (Stanley Gold/Leo Hindery/Alan Casden), and one I want (Magic Johnson).

The remaining bidders proceed to a multilayered review by Major League Baseball, including consideration by two committees of owners. Each bidder then will be subject to a vote of all owners, with three-fourths approval required.

While we can hope that they eliminate the owners who allow Frank McCourt to keep the parking lots, it won’t happen, since it was Bud Selig who agreed to allow him to negotiate those terms to begin with.

Honestly though, how many Dodgers fans are going to be happy if the new owner starts off his era by letting McCourt keep the parking lots?

Not understanding why one would drop so much money on a franchise and get off to a bad start with the fans.

Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times recently revealed that Donald Trump‘s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, is in the running for ownership of the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Jared Kushner, born into a prominent New York real estate family and son-in-law of Donald Trump, has emerged as a candidate in the bidding for the Dodgers.

The Kushner bid is one of at least nine to advance to the second round of the Dodgers’ ownership sweepstakes. The bid has not previously surfaced publicly and was confirmed by a person familiar with the sale process but not authorized to discuss it.

Being associated with Donald Trump is a black mark already.

The person familiar with the sale process said Kushner is working with UBS Vice Chairman Aryeh Bourkoff, whose expertise includes investment banking in media and technology.

Bourkoff has worked on deals involving such parties as Comcast, Charter Communications and Time Warner Cable, all of which have been mentioned as potential backers of a Dodgers-owned regional sports network.

Caring about the media rights more than the team is strike two.

The bid does not include Kushner’s father, Charles, the person familiar with the sale process said. In 2005, the elder Kushner was sentenced to two years in prison for illegal campaign contributions, tax evasion and witness tampering, according to news reports.

Strike three.

All it took was a brief overview and I would already rather not have the Dodgers be involved with all this for the same reason I don’t like Steven Cohen.

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Dear Magic Johnson,

Please bid eleventy trillion dollars.

Love,

Chad Moriyama