Owners’ Group to Meet to OK Sale of Mariners
Baseball’s ownership committee will meet at a secret location today and is expected to recommend approval of a predominantly Japanese-financed offer to buy the Seattle Mariners for slightly more than $100 million.
However, the Japanese voting power on the ballclub’s board will be less than 50%, sources confirmed Tuesday. That is intended to mollify some owners, who in December voted down a proposal to allow non-North American ownership.
The Seattle-area individuals who will contribute about $50 million to the deal reportedly will control a majority of the voting stock in the corporation.
Hiroshi Yamauchi, the president of Nintendo Co., Ltd., of Kyoto, still will contribute $75 million. But he will not control 60% of the stock because his money will be used to buy preferred stock with no voting power, and to make loans to the team.
More to Read
Get our high school sports newsletter
Prep Rally is devoted to the SoCal high school sports experience, bringing you scores, stories and a behind-the-scenes look at what makes prep sports so popular.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.