MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred on Thursday continued to downplay reports this week of Marlins Owner Jeffrey Loria reaching an agreement in principal to sell the club to a group led by former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and former MLBer Derek Jeter, calling the reports "premature." Manfred said the process still involves multiple bidding groups and that there is no signed agreement of any kind yet. Manfred: "We're working with more than one group." He added that a timeline toward reaching a deal for the Marlins is "relatively short. It would be measured in days, not months." But he did not say whether a Marlins sale will be put before owners for approval at either of the next two owners' meetings (Eric Fisher, Staff Writer).
JUMPING ON THE STICKS: GEEKWIRE's Taylor Soper noted Nintendo's bottom line "got a nice bump last year" after selling its stake in the Mariners. The company "revealed how much it made" off selling its stake of the team, which it bought in '92. Nintendo of America sold most of its majority stake in August '16 to minority owners -- it "still owns" 10% of the team -- in a deal that put $580M into the company's bank account. The deal valued the Mariners at $1.4B (GEEKWIRE.com, 4/27).
A LITTLE HOME COOKING: In West Palm Beach, Anthony Chiang cited a source as saying that the Heat getting a D-League team in Florida is "not imminent and the Heat are currently in discussions with Sioux Falls to extend their partnership." The Sioux Falls Sky Force are "about 1,826 miles away from Miami." Heat President Pat Riley said, "I can't wait for the day that every team has a minor-league (team) within 100 miles from where they are, as a real minor-league team." The Heat "could have its 'minor league team'" in Broward County or Palm Beach County (PALMBEACHPOST.com, 4/26).
