Former MLB Rangers Owner Brad Corbett Passes Away At 75

BRAD CORBETT, who owned the MLB Rangers from '74-80, passed away in his sleep Monday at the age of 75. A Ft. Worth businessman, Corbett “might be best remembered for his time with the Rangers for the 1977 season when they had four managers.” He “made his fortune by building a plastic pipe company from the ground up and then realized his dream of owning a baseball team when he bought the Rangers from BOB SHORT for $9.5 million on May 29, 1974.” He sold the team to EDDIE CHILES in ’80 (FT. WORTH STAR-TELEGRAM, 12/26). In N.Y., Bruce Weber writes Corbett’s “turbulent tenure” as owner of the Rangers “brought the franchise Steinbrenner-like hubris and pocketbook diplomacy, but only middling success.” He “spent freely to acquire free agents, if not always wisely.” The Rangers during his tenure had four winning seasons and finished second three times, including ’77, when the team won 94 games (N.Y. TIMES, 12/27).