In N.Y., Yankees Owner George Steinbrenner "has been
spotted going in and out of Trump Tower repeatedly" as
sources say "he is in marathon" talks with Cablevision Chair
Charles Dolan (N.Y. POST, 10/27)....FL commodities-broker
John Henry hoped to announce his purchase of the Marlins
this week, but MLB rules and "last-minute tinkering" with
the team's cable contract could delay the announcement "for
a week or longer" (MIAMI HERALD, 10/27)....The NFL Giants
"quietly raised" $25M in August in a private placement bond
sale to New York Life Insurance for the second time in as
many years. The move was made to keep up with "rising
payroll and other operational needs." New York Life has now
loaned the team $50M (SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL, 10/26 issue).
...In Toronto, Raptors President Richard Peddie wrote WNBA
Commissioner Val Ackerman and included statistics "to
bolster his belief that Toronto deserves a WNBA team,
including the fact that basketball is the fastest-growing
sport among young women in Canada." Women also accounted
for 40% of CTV's NBA audience for games last year. As far
as participation, basketball is the third most popular sport
among Canadian women after volleyball and baseball (Toronto
GLOBE & MAIL, 10/26).