Honestly, I would be happier if he didn't get approved. All the negative stories coupled with his having to finance the purchase of the team with huge loans point to a future of more disappointment.
The Leagues and Divisions will change with or without us. Nothing stays the same. not Even in baseball. Moving to the American League does not bother me because there will be much change over the next 50 years. It's inevitable. No reason to remain a cowboy and a dinosaur in a world and game that is constantly evolving.
I could be wrong, but in over 130 years only one time has a team changed leagues, and other than the 1969 and 1994 major re-alignments no team has ever changed divisions, so it's hardly a trend. Send the Brewers back where they started, that makes a lot more sense.
The bad news is he is much wealthier than Friedman, who would be the preferred owner by most of us. I honestly don't think Friedman is even a legitimate option. I've said it before on here, that it is a very legitimate concern.
wow http://blog.chron.com/ultimateastro...0-million-reduction-of-astros-purchase-price/ Report: Jim Crane asks for $50 million reduction of Astros purchase price Jim Crane is looking to cut $50 million from his purchase price of the Houston Astros for switching the team to the American League, according to the New York Post. Crane reached a deal in May to buy the Astros from Drayton McClane for $680 million. Baseball has interest in moving the Astros from the National League to the American League. Wrote the Post: On that front, the two sides are in the “ballpark” on the price, although a deal is far from certain, sources said. Crane argues the move to the AL would hurt the value of the franchise because the Astros would be playing more late-night games against West Coast teams. For commissioner Bud Selig’s part, the switch would foster a rivalry between the Astros and the Texas Rangers.
I think $50 million should be the minimum. You really need about an additional $8 million or so a year, at the least, to have your team competitive in the AL... Selig better be willing to do it.
That's just what he owes Crane....he owes me about $5,000/year to compensate me for my troubles related to a league switch for my favorite sports franchise.
selling out for $50 million. hard to judge him for that. but this sucks. way to kick Houston when they're down. here's another occasion to invite Mr. Selig to: kiss my ass. son-of-a-b****.
Wow. From a league's perspective, 50 million does not sound like that much. If they really do want to balance up the number of teams in the leagues, I am surprised they have not jumped on that.
Seriously, why do they keep letting this man write articles for a major newspaper? He believe this means less money in Drayton's pockets...he misses entirely that this is Crane negotiating with MLB/Selig; not Drayton. Drayton still gets his $680...Crane puts up $630...MLB kicks in the $50. Now it won't surprise me if Crane is ultimately using all of this to save face and get the heck out of Dodge.... http://blog.chron.com/sportsjustice...at-sound-you-hear-is-drayton-mclanes-sobbing/ Jim Crane may have found his exit strategy from the Astros. Or is it Drayton who’ll walk away from the deal? For weeks, Commissioner Bud Selig has been wrestling with whether or not Jim Crane should own the Astros. Crane’s $680-million offer has been tough for MLB to walk away from. It’s the second-highest price ever paid for a franchise and would raise the value of every other franchise. Drayton McLane appears to have done a good job convincing Selig that there are no other bidders out there, at least no other bidders willing to offer anything close to $680 million. Drayton has pushed aggressively to get Crane approved. Unfortunately for him, Selig has had a tough time convincing himself that Crane belongs in baseball. He has looked into the charges of racism, sexism and war profiteering for weeks and has had his staff talk to dozens of people to try and figure out if Crane is the victim he makes himself out to be. Also, Selig hadn’t forgotten that just three years ago McLane himself appeared to despise Crane after their 2008 deal fell apart. Just as the sale was to be announced, Crane walked away. It’s unclear where Selig is in his thought process on this version of the sale, but it speaks volumes that Crane still doesn’t own the Astros. If he doesn’t get the team at the November 15-16 meeting of MLB owners, he’s unlikely to ever get them. His contract with McLane expires November 30. During the vetting process, Crane was approached about the possibility of moving the Astros to the American League. He appears to have told MLB officials he would be willing to discuss the switch. Now comes a New York Post report that Crane wants a $50-million discount for switching leagues. If that story is accurate, it could provide him with a convenient exit strategy from a process that could be headed toward an unsatisfactory conclusion. That $680-million purchase price is so high that it clearly has been one of the things keeping the sale alive. If MLB believed there were other bidders willing to pay $680 million, it almost certainly would have sold the team to one of them. Now Crane is asking McLane to reopen negotiations. My guess is that request will not sit well with McLane even if $630 million is more money than he could get if he put the team back on the market. If it’s true that Crane wants a discount, McLane may be the one who walks away this time. MLB officials have cautioned for weeks not to assume anything. They said that despite Selig’s reservations, he could still become convinced that Crane was the right man to buy the Astros. Somewhere along the way, Crane may have gotten tired of waiting or come to believe he would never get the club. He appears to have found a way out of the deal.
this was a comment in RJ's last little blog I just posted: John B. says: October 20, 2011 at 1:10 pm Richard, I emailed you recently regarding territorial restrictions and home team markets regarding the Astros and Rangers. If the Astros move to the American League will they no longer be broadcast in many areas of the state? I live in the Texas panhandle and our area currently receives the Astros as the National League representative and Rangers as the American League representative in our market. My guess is if the Astros move to the American League their games will no longer be televised in much of the state because the Rangers will be considered the home team market for the American League. If the Astros will no longer be seen by the majority of the state how can that be a good thing for the Astros?
Seriously, what a bizarre take from Justice. The NY Post story, in addition to making it obvious that the $50 million comes from MLB, acknowledges that the two sides are "in the same ballpark" on the price. Who knows if it will work out, but it has nothing to do with Drayton receiving less money.
That is a very good question and one I didn't even think about. Living in Round Rock, I have no idea what territory we would end up being in. With the new channel coming on board in the near future, it's possible we're losing the games in central Texas anyway (assuming a cable deal goes much like it is with the LHN). If we lose the Astros here because of this, I will be done with MLB.
Yeah, tell me again, RJ, how this was really all about his war profiteering and EEOC complaints..... http://blog.chron.com/ultimateastro...mpensation-to-move-astros-to-american-league/ UPDATE: MLB ‘seems very interested’ to get Astros sale finalized Posted on October 20, 2011 at 10:41 am by Steve Campbell in Astros, Astros/MLB Share 34 share E-mail . Major League Baseball is in discussions with prospective Astros owner Jim Crane about possible compensation for agreeing to move the team to the American League. Two people familiar with the negotiations said on Thursday that MLB has broached the subject with Crane, who in May reached an agreement to purchase the team from Drayton McLane for $680 million. One industry insider said MLB representatives floated $50 million as a possible compensation package for Crane and his group of investors to move the team from the National League. It is not known if MLB has formally offered the $50 million, or if such compensation would come from a reduction in the sale price or by other means. The discussions would suggest that MLB commissioner Bud Selig has moved past vetting the Crane group and will attempt to finalize the sale. “Baseball seems very interested to cause this to happen,” an industry insider familiar with the negotiations said on Thursday. That would constitute a significant shift from August, when MLB removed a scheduled vote to approve the sale from the owners’ meetings agenda. A person familiar with top MLB officials’ thinking has repeatedly said past EEOC complaints at Crane’s companies have held up approval of the deal. The New York Post reported that Crane, a cargo-shipping magnate who is making his fourth attempt to purchase a major league team, is asking for a $50 million reduction in the sale price. According to the Post report, Selig “is pushing” owners to approve Crane as the new owner in part because the purchase price is second only to the $845 million that the Ricketts family paid for the Chicago Cubs in 2009. The Post quotes one source saying there is a “65 to 70 percent chance” that MLB will reach a deal with Crane. “The moves are in (MLB’s) court,” an insider told the Chronicle. According to that person, MLB officials are trying to pressure McLane into facilitating a deal by reducing the sale price. Selig and the MLB Players Association want two 15-team leagues that will allow for the addition to two wild-card playoff teams. One of the 16 NL teams would have to change leagues for that to happen, and there have been no volunteers. Because of the pending sale, the Astros would appear to be susceptible to persuasion to sever ties with the NL that go back to 1962. McLane said MLB has not asked him to reduce the sales price and rejected the notion he’s under any pressure to do so. The agreement between Crane and McLane expires on Nov. 30. “That’s a negotiation with Major League Baseball and Jim,” McLane said. “He’s still in the approval process. It’s more their deal. We have a deal with Jim and his group. They’re in the approval process, discussing various things. “We’re not changing the sale price. The engagement is between Jim and his group and baseball. They have not talked to us to reduce the sale price.”
they're taking our league from us, and shoving season-long interleague play and DH down our throats, and there's nothing we can do about it. MLB is starting to really, really suck.
I *like* late-starting games. I work late a lot. I stay up late a *lot*. I listen to the radio in bed. It's the AL, and the DH, that I'm not cool with. And, I'd rather see this gimmicky interleague play be reduced or even eliminated, not expanded to ALL FREAKING SEASON. blyech. Go Coogs! Go Owls!
