Boston real-estate developer Frank McCourt finally bought the Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday, taking over the baseball team from News Corp less than a week before it starts spring training.
With the close of the highly leveraged US$430 million sale, McCourt immediately became chairman of the team. His wife, Jamie, became vice chairman.
"They now have official control of the franchise," Dodgers senior vice president Derrick Hall said. "They're ecstatic and ready to get going."
McCourt announced on Oct. 10 he had agreed to buy the team along with Dodger Stadium and adjoining real estate, plus training facilities in Vero Beach, Florida, and the Dominican Republic. Baseball owners voted on Jan. 29 to approve the sale. The O'Malley family controlled the Dodgers for nearly 48 years before selling to News Corp in March 1998.
"My family and I are extremely excited to have learned that the closing is official and to have this process behind us so that we may now move forward with our plans," McCourt said in a statement.
The most pressing of those decisions involves the general manager. Dan Evans is in the final year of a three-year contract, but McCourt said two weeks ago that Evans was merely a candidate for his own job.
McCourt has spoken with Evans, Philadelphia Phillies assistant GM Ruben Amaro Jr. and Oakland Athletics assistant GM Paul DePodesta about the job. DePodesta is believed to be the leading candidate.
"The GM search is going on right now," Hall said. "They're having discussions with other individuals."
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