Bankruptcy judge rules that Rangers will be auctioned
A federal bankruptcy judge decided yesterday that the Texas Rangers will be auctioned off after all, despite angry creditors' claims that the bidding process is unfair and still favors Major League Baseball's preferred buyer.
A federal bankruptcy judge decided yesterday that the Texas Rangers will be auctioned off after all, despite angry creditors' claims that the bidding process is unfair and still favors Major League Baseball's preferred buyer.
U.S. Bankruptcy Judge D. Michael Lynn set the auction for Aug. 4 after changing some of the team's proposed bidding procedures, citing a "need to bring order from chaos." The final hearing on whether to approve the Rangers' bankruptcy plan was set for later that day.
After the auction, Major League Baseball will still be able to reject the highest bidder and approve the next highest bid - something lenders opposed. But if that happens, the judge can determine whether the league acted in good faith, according to the revised procedures.
Months ago, the league gave its blessing to a group led by team president and Hall of Fame pitcher Nolan Ryan and Pittsburgh sports attorney Chuck Greenberg, selected as the buyers after a bidding process last year.
But because angry creditors stalled the sale over financial concerns, the team filed for Chapter 11 protection in May with a plan to repay lenders $75 million and sell the club to Greenberg and Ryan's group.
Although lenders said that bid was not the highest and the court-appointed chief restructuring officer recommended a new round of bidding, only the team and the Greenberg-Ryan group pushed for the auction yesterday.
Attorneys for the creditors and restructuring officer said they no longer supported an auction because the bidding procedures and timetable would limit a potential buyer's ability to secure financing. They also said Major League Baseball still wants the Greenberg-Ryan group.
In the revised procedures, starting bids must be at least $15 million higher than the cash portion of the Greenberg-Ryan bid, which totals about $575 million and includes paying the full $204 million owed to unsecured creditors. Topping the list of unsecured creditors is New York Yankees star Alex Rodriguez, who is owed $24.9 million in deferred compensation 6 years after he was traded.
Noteworthy
* A rare Stephen Strasburg baseball card is hitting the auction block again. Bidding opens for the autographed 2010 Bowman Prospects rookie card at $9,000 at noon today. Huggins and Scott, a sports memorabilia auction house in Silver Spring, Md., is hosting the 2-week online auction. The anonymous owner tried to sell the card on eBay in June, but that auction ended when outrageous bids exceeding $900,000 could not be verified.
* The Postal Service will release a pair of stamps tomorrow commemorating the Negro Leagues in ceremonies at the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City. The Negro Leagues gave black players a chance to show their talents before the major leagues were integrated. One stamp shows a close play at home plate, while the other commemorates Andrew "Rube" Foster, founder of the leagues that operated from 1920 to 1960.
