Astros owner McLane puts club on market Allen & Company indicates sale could take six to 12 months HOUSTON -- Astros owner Drayton McLane announced Friday afternoon that he will begin accepting offers for the sale of the Astros, the team he's owned for 18 years. Speaking while his wife, Elizabeth, and sons, Denton and Drayton III, watched nearby at a news conference at Minute Maid Park, McLane spoke fondly of his time as owner, but said the family has decided it's time to move on. "After much thought and discussion with my family, we decided that the time was right for this," McLane said. "The past 18 seasons have been a wonderful experience for us. We have been fortunate to be part of something special here. "When you own a Major League Baseball team, you have an opportunity to impact your city in so many ways. The fans, players, business and political leaders have all embraced us warmly. We're proud of the success we had on the field, but are equally as proud of the success we had off of it. One of our goals was to have a positive impact in the community, and I think we did that. Now, we look forward to passing the torch to start a new era of Astros baseball." Steve Greenberg of Allen & Company has been secured to work with prospective buyers on the sale of the team, a process Greenberg said could take six to 12 months. "We have no buyer in mind today," McLane said. "This is something that we're going to explore. But we can assure you -- and I have been lectured by Elizabeth constantly, and particularly several times today -- before we select a buyer, it will be an organization or individual with very, very high standards, integrity, honesty, and they want to do the very same things -- be a champion, and to really get involved." During McLane's 18-year tenure of ownership, the Astros have had their most successful run in franchise history, posting the fourth-best record in the National League in that span while making six postseason appearances. Prior to 1993, the Astros had just three playoff appearances in the first 31 seasons of the franchise (1962-92). On Thursday, Houston television station KRIV-TV, citing a Major League Baseball source, said the asking price would be $800 million. McLane purchased the club for $117 milllion in 1993. At the news conference, McLane joked that "he couldn't pronounce" some of the numbers he's seen bandied about in reports. Last month, the Astros and the NBA's Houston Rockets announced they had reached an agreement with cable network provider Comcast to launch a regional sports network that will begin airing Astros games in 2013 and Rockets games beginning with the 2012 preseason. McLane has flirted with selling the team in recent years, but has heretofore stopped short of saying the club is for sale. In January, McLane acknowledged he had granted a 30-day exclusive negotiating window to sell the team to a New York investment banking company, which was reportedly identified as Great Court Capital, but a deal never materialized. A month earlier, McLane revealed he had a handshake agreement with Houston businessman Jim Crane following the 2008 season to sell the team, but said the deal fell through because of Crane's concerns about the economy. Since McLane purchased the Astros, the team has been to the playoffs six times, including its first World Series berth in 2005. The Astros moved into Minute Maid Park in 2000, and earlier this year welcomed their 30 millionth fan through the turnstiles. Houston finished 76-86 last season and posted one of the best second-half finishes in baseball. Next season will mark the franchise's 50th season since it began as the Colt .45's as an expansion team in 1962. Throughout their ownership of the Astros, Drayton and Elizabeth McLane have donated more than $30 million in charitable contributions, including almost $7 million through the Astros in Action Foundation, which was formed in 2000 to serve Houston and surrounding communities. In April 2010, the team opened the Astros MLB Urban Youth Academy, which was made possible through a joint venture between Astros In Action, Major League Baseball and the City of Houston. The academy, which is located in north Houston, provides an opportunity for underprivileged youth to develop life skills while learning and playing the game of baseball. McLane's commitment to making a positive difference in the community was exemplified in 2008 during the aftermath of Hurricane Ike, when McLane, the Astros in Action Foundation, and the Astros players and staff made a combined $1 million donation to the Gulf Coast Ike Relief Fund. The team also enacted numerous initiatives at Minute Maid Park during the final week of the 2008 season that focused on relief for hurricane victims, including a blood drive, food and supply drives, and collection of donations for the Gulf Coast Ike Relief Fund. During his 18 years in Major League Baseball, McLane has served on MLB's Executive Committee, Finance Committee, Legislative Affairs, Ownership and Realignment committees, and the MLB Advanced Media Board. 这是MLB.com 的记者 Brian McTaggart 所报导 来源: http://ppt.cc/vGGU --

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