Doubleday Agrees to Give Up Mets

Nelson Doubleday agreed Tuesday in New York to sell his 50% of the New York Mets to co-owner Fred Wilpon, settling an ugly lawsuit filled with accusations of misconduct.

Wilpon sued Doubleday last month in federal court to try to force a sale of his partner’s 50% share based on a $391 million appraisal of the team made in March by Robert Starkey.

There was no immediate word on the price Doubleday will receive as part of the agreement, which was first reported Tuesday on Newsday’s Web site.

Under the Starkey appraisal, Doubleday would have received $137.9 million--half the team’s value, after adjustments for the team’s debt.

In addition to a higher appraisal, Doubleday had been seeking provisions for an additional payment in the event the Mets move into a new ballpark, which would increase the team’s value.

Dick Cummins, a Doubleday advisor, confirmed the agreement but would not elaborate, and Wilpon spokesman Richard Auletta said the announcement of the settlement by Commissioner Bud Selig “speaks for itself.”

Wilpon will move to dismiss his suit when the deal closes, Selig’s office said. The commissioner’s office said the sale is expected to close within 30 days.

“I was confident that at the end of the day they put their personal feelings aside and act in the best interests of the game,” said Selig, whose mediation led to the settlement.

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Ted Williams’ eldest daughter asked a judge to keep jurisdiction in the dispute with her half-siblings on whether to cremate or deep freeze the slugger’s body.

The request made Tuesday by Bobby-Jo Williams Ferrell came five days after the executor of Williams’ estate withdrew his request asking the judge to help resolve the spat over Williams’ body.

The estate’s executor, Al Cassidy, said last week he’s convinced the Hall of Famer wanted to be cryonically frozen and that a judge’s guidance was no longer necessary.

Williams said in his will that he wanted to be cremated and his ashes scattered off the Florida coast. But his youngest children, John Henry Williams and Claudia Williams, maintain they signed a handwritten pact with their father in November 2000 agreeing that their bodies would be frozen.

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Former relief ace Randy Myers, out of the majors since 1998, has been training at the New York Yankees’ complex in Tampa, Fla., for more than a week.

“There’s no commitment on either side. We’ll just see where it goes,” the left-hander said. “I’m just working out the kinks.”

Myers, 39, made a brief return last year, signing a minor league contract with Seattle on Aug. 28. He pitched once for triple-A Tacoma, and did not retire any of the four batters he faced.

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New York Met catcher Mike Piazza was scratched from the lineup shortly before the start of Tuesday’s game against the San Diego Padres because of a sore left wrist. The wrist started to bother Piazza in batting practice.... Tampa Bay Devil Ray infielder Russ Johnson is set to resume working out at the team’s minor league complex after missing the past month while undergoing treatment for depression.