THE SIDELINES : Steinbrenner Plans to Transfer Yankee Stock to Family Member

George Steinbrenner will soon relinquish his majority ownership of the New York Yankees by transferring stock to a family member, his attorneys said today.

“This will ensure that the Steinbrenner family will retain the majority ownership of the Yankees and clarify, once and for all, that the family is not giving up that position,” Paul Curran, a former U.S. attorney who now heads Steinbrenner’s legal representation, said in a prepared statement.

The family member has not yet been identified, and Curran said, “I don’t know if he wants to do that just now.”

Curran said the transfer to a family member was approved by the commissioner’s office and the American League, both of which confirmed they had granted permission.

“I don’t know that the transfer has taken effect yet, but it’ll be fairly soon,” Curran said.

Baseball Commissioner Fay Vincent ordered Steinbrenner to give up his position as managing general partner of the Yankees after an investigation last summer showed that Steinbrenner paid a gambler, Howard Spira, to dig up damaging information about Dave Winfield and his foundation.