New Offer May Increase Chance of Giants Staying in San Francisco

The group attempting to buy and keep the Giants in San Francisco announced Wednesday it has increased its offer to $100 million, prompting Dodger President Peter O’Malley to say that the chances of the Giants remaining gets “brighter each day.”

There is no timetable as to when the ownership committee will make a recommendation between the San Francisco group and the Tampa-St. Petersburg group that has offered $115 million, but it could be made during a full ownership meeting tentatively scheduled for Phoenix, Nov. 10-11.

O’Malley, a leader in the attempt to keep the Giants in the Bay Area, said the group headed by Peter Magowan, CEO and president of the Safeway Corp., has been “very responsive” to questions and concerns of the ownership committee.

O’Malley, a member of that committee, said he continues to be encouraged about the chances of the Giants remaining, and that he has been very impressed with the response of Bay Area fans.

“I’ve received more mail by far on the issue of keeping the Giants in San Francisco than any other issue since I became president of the Dodgers,” he said.

The Magowan group made a $95-million offer on Oct. 12 and was told by the ownership committee it would have to be more in line with the Florida offer.

The Florida group headed by Vince Naimoli has a purchase agreement with the Giants’ owner, Bob Lurie, but the National League, through President Bill White and the ownership committee, is handling negotiations with the Magowan group.

Naimoli has also agreed that he will not bring legal action against the league if his bid is rejected, but Rick Dodge, the assistant city manager of St. Petersburg, said that the city is not restricted by that agreement. Dodge said that the San Francisco offers violated the agreement with Lurie and represented “the basis of a lawsuit.”