The Los Angeles Dodgers and owner Frank McCourt said on Tuesday that Guggenheim Baseball Management will buy the baseball team for $2 billion, which will help the Dodgers to finally emerge out of bankruptcy protection.
The purchasing group includes Mark Walter as its controlling partner, as well as former basketball superstar Magic Johnson, Peter Guber, Stan Kasten, Bobby Patton and Todd Boehly, the Dodgers said.
McCourt and certain affiliates of the buyers will also be forming a joint venture, which will acquire the Chavez Ravine property for an additional $150 million.
"This agreement with Guggenheim reflects both the strength and future potential of the Los Angeles Dodgers, and assures that the Dodgers will have new ownership with deep local roots, which bodes well for the Dodgers, its fans and the Los Angeles community," McCourt said.
The sale process began in November, when Major League Baseball and McCourt ended litigation and agreed to a sale of the team supervised by the bankruptcy court that has overseen it since June.
The sale is being conducted by Blackstone Group and McCourt. Major League Baseball is vetting bidders during the process.
The Dodgers landed on the auction block after McCourt was forced to place the team under bankruptcy protection last year.
McCourt had been expected to choose from three bidders, with the final bid seen around $1.5 billion, two sources with knowledge of the bidding said on Monday.
(Reporting by Sakthi Prasad; Editing by Kim Coghill)
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