The sale of the Astros to Jim Crane from Drayton McLane was officially approved today, with the team moving from the NL Central to the AL West beginning with the '13 season, according to Barry Bloom of MLB.com. The sale price of $610M includes a "$70 million credit" for switching leagues (MLB.com, 11/17). In Houston, Zachary Levine in a front-page piece reports the feeling of anger over the team's move to the AL “has come to the forefront” for fans. From individual comments “to the 76 percent of fans polled unscientifically, displeasure abounds" over the Astros’ move to the AL West. Many fans “are uncomfortable with the dissolution of what will be 51 years of National League ties.” A source said, “There was no choice for Jim, there was no choice for Drayton and there was no choice for Houston. There was a point where Drayton and Jim realized that this wasn’t going to change” (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 11/17). In Houston, Steve Campbell reported local attorney Kevin Yankowsky said that the Astros' move to the AL “could violate the team’s lease agreement with the Harris County Houston Sports Authority.” Yankowsky “outlined his findings from a review of the lease” in a letter Tuesday to Sports Authority Chair J. Kent Friedman. Yankowsky “will make a presentation at the Dec. 1 Sports Authority Board of Directors meeting urging a strict enforcement of the Astros’ lease to play their home games at Minute Maid Park.” Yankowsky said that the “wording of the lease ... spells out the Astros cannot play at Minute Maid as anything but a National League team without receiving prior consent from the Sports Authority” (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 11/17).
NO MOVE, NO DEAL: The AP’s Kristie Rieken reports MLB told Crane “it would not approve his purchase of the Astros unless he agreed to move the team” to the AL. A source said that Crane "was forced to agree to move the sale along." The MLBPA "believes two 15-team leagues would create a more proportionate schedule and has urged baseball to make the switch” (AP, 11/17). In Houston, Richard Justice wrote Crane “is getting a raw deal in the discussions” because he “wasn’t going to own the Astros unless he agreed to change leagues.” No matter “who the new owner was going to be, the Astros were switching leagues.” Meanwhile, the sale “took six months to complete, in part, because as McLane lobbied MLB to approve the purchase, one man’s words kept working against him. His own.” An MLB official said, “One of the problems Drayton had was that for two years he’d told us Jim Crane was the worst person on earth. And then one day, he’s telling us Jim Crane is the right man to own the Houston Astros.” McLane “admits to having hard feelings when Crane backed out of a deal to buy” the team in ’08. Justice notes McLane said to him, “This may surprise you, but there have been times I’ve been mad at you. I haven’t stayed mad, have I? Listen, I’ve gotten to know Jim better. I like Jim. I know Jim will be a great owner” (CHRON.com, 11/16).
WONDERFUL RIDE: McLane said of his feelings for turning over the Astros, "There's definitely sadness ... mixed emotions. But it's been a wonderful ride. I've done this for 19 years, and I can remember how elated I was when it all started. Jim, I think, will be very good. I introduced him [Wednesday] to a number of the owners. He handled himself today very, very well. He's an experienced businessman. I think he's ready. The concerns [regarding alleged discrimination and war profiteering] were from 20 years ago, and I think he's now ready for the big time." McLane acknowledged estate planning concerns are largely driving the sale. "I've seen the kind of problems this has caused in the NFL. It's better for me to address this now." Rangers CEO Nolan Ryan said the Astros' pending move to the AL, set to begin with the '13 season, will be a positive for his club. "I've said all along I grew up an Astros fan, and I look at the Astros as an NL team. But I understand the desire to balance out the two leagues. From our perspective, having them in our division, I like it, because it gives us another team in our time zone. I think that if both teams are competitive in a given year, it will create a good rivalry within the state" (Eric Fisher, SportsBusiness Journal).
