MINOR LEAGUE ROUNDUP: Portland Family Entertainment
(PFE), a partnership headed by former Trail Blazers exec
Marshall Glickman, has reached an agreement with Single A
Portland Rockies Owner Jack Cain to allow a Triple A team to
replace the Rockies at Civic Stadium. Cain and Glickman
have already "set a price" on the Rockies, but the deal
"hinges on" PFE's acquisition of a Triple A team by December
31 (Portland OREGONIAN, 6/24)....In Nashville, Maurice
Patton wrote that Single A Sounds co-Owner Al Gordon is set
to become the team's new General Partner, "as he has
virtually bought out [co-Owners] Mike Murtaugh and Mike
Woleben." All three will retain ownership of the Single A
Cougars, located in Geneva, IL, under their American Sports
Enterprises (Nashville TENNESSEAN, 6/24)....In Greensboro,
Todd Graff writes that ECHL Monarchs Owner Art Donaldson and
two minority partners of Greensboro Sports LLC paid $1.5M
for the expansion team. The league has increased its
expansion fee to $2M, but the Donaldson group was "granted a
grandfather clause" because the city had a team before the
Hurricanes began playing there in '97 (Greensboro NEWS &
RECORD, 6/25)....IHL Grizzlies and WISL Freezz President Tim
Mouser said that he is "looking at the possibility" of
bringing an AFL team to Salt Lake City (S.L. TRIB., 6/25).
SPECIAL REPORT: In Phoenix, Kent Somers examines
minority hirings in the front offices of the city's four pro
sports teams and writes that of the 26 people listed as
officials/managers in the D'Backs' workplace profile filed
with the city, "19 are Anglo, six are Hispanic and one is
Asian. There are six women in the group, including four who
are Hispanic. On the baseball side of the operation,
however, there is one dominant color -- White" (AZ REPUBLIC,
6/25). Somers notes that 98 of the Coyotes' 102 front
office employees "are Anglo, according to the company's
workplace profile filed with the city" (AZ REPUBLIC, 6/25).
Somers writes on the Suns under the header, "Suns Keep
Control In The Family" (AZ REPUBLIC, 6/25). Somers, on the
Cardinals: "There are no Hispanics in the organization. But
the club has a history of hiring African-Americans for
signficant management jobs" (AZ REPUBLIC, 6/25).
OH CANADA: Potential Expos investor Stephen Bronfman's
"associates ... acknowledge it would be surprising if he's
not involved in the bid" to keep the Expos in Montreal, with
him possibly "mulling over a much larger stake" than the
reported C$5M investment. In Toronto, Jeff Blair writes
that MLB and Expos execs believe a "resolution" of team
President Claude Brochu's status, "formalizing" prospective
owner Jeffrey Loria's involvement and the "acceptance of a
new ballpark isn't realistic until the first week of August
at the earliest" (GLOBE & MAIL, 6/25)....The Blue Jays'
"Austin Powers" promotion last night drew 26,117 to the
SkyDome, with those dressed as characters from the movie
admitted for free. The team showed the first film on the
JumboTron before the game (GLOBE & MAIL, 6/25).
NBA BUSINESS ARMS: Ascent Entertainment directors
"acknowledged for the first time" that an auction for the
Nuggets, Avalanche and Pepsi Center "would provide
'substantial benefits' to shareholders." Also, Bill and
Nancy Laurie will receive a break-up fee of between $3-6M
"should they fail to prevail in the new auction" (DENVER
POST, 6/25)....The Nets raised ticket prices for the second
consecutive year, with the most expensive now at $600, a 20%
increase. However, some upper-level prices were lowered
from $30 to $25. Overall, the team raised prices in eight
areas, lowered prices in five and kept four the same (Newark
STAR-LEDGER, 6/25)....The Lakers will "bypass" holding
training camp in Hawaii, and will instead train at one of
three Southern CA sites -- Long Beach, Palm Springs or
Irvine (AP/L.A. TIMES, 6/24).
MLB HEADED TO CHARLOTTE IN 2000? During an interview on
Charlotte's WFNZ-AM, ESPN baseball analyst Peter Gammons
said that "he believes [MLB] will be in Charlotte next
spring." Gammons: "I think it'll be there ... I really
believe it" (CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 6/25).