UPDATE: The Astros have called a 2pm CT press conference to announce the sales agreement between McLane and Crain

Multiple sources have said that a sales agreement between current owner Drayton McLane and Houston businessman Jim Crane could be announced as early as today. The Astros have not commented on the sale. The reported sale price is $680 million. Drayton McLane purchased the Astros for $117 million in 1992. Accounting for inflation, in today’s dollars that would be worth approx $180 million. He will also receive $95 million in monies associated to the new regional sports network being started with the Houston Rockets.
If a sales agreement is reached, final approval on the sale transfer would need to come from a vote of 75 percent of the league's 30 owners.

More details as they become available

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Comments (3)

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Leverage?
written by Larry@IIATMS, May 16, 2011

Would like to know if purchase price is leveraged with team debt, and if so, how much. Because, you know, there's precedent for that not turning out so well ...

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Reports indicate Jim Crane's offer is HEAVILY leveraged
written by Astros Fan, May 16, 2011

Jim Crane's net worth is about 90% less than Drayton McLane's. Media reports out of Houston indicate Crane's group will be borrowing upwards of $250 million to finance the sale. Drayton McLane also will be keeping something like $65 million in the team, which appears to be a de facto loan to help Crane get around MLB's debt limits. In a separate transaction, Crane is also buying McLane's share of the new Houston sports network for $93 million, which could (and very likely does) involve additional debt.

In the words of a commenter at another site, Crane also "has more skeletons in his closet than the Smithsonian," but the media has been largely silent on Crane and the entire Astros sale. People seem to be in such a hurry to see McLane go that they're not paying attention to who they're getting. This deal has "McCourt" written all over it.

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NAACP wants close eye kept on Astros new owner
written by Astros Fan, May 16, 2011

Uh, oh. The Houston NAACP sounds less than excited about Jim Crane. Perhaps this deal is less of a sure thing than Drayton McLane wants us to believe ...

http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/story?section=news/sports&id=8134310

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