NEW YORK -- Tribune Co. CEO Sam Zell said Tuesday that the media conglomerate has chosen five bidders for the Chicago Cubs.
Zell said during a conference call with lenders that separate bids have been made on storied Wrigley Field, the nation's second-oldest baseball stadium. The team's sale must be approved by Major League Baseball.
Tribune is selling the ballpark, baseball team and a 25 percent interest in a local sports channel to raise cash to pay down $13.4 billion in debt, mostly related to the buyout.
Major League Baseball in June sent out financial books on the three properties to nine preapproved bidders.
The list reportedly included a group headed by John Canning, chairman of private equity firm Madison Dearborn Partners LLC; Internet billionaire and Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban; and the family of online brokerage Ameritrade's founder, Joe Ricketts.
People familiar with the process -- who declined to be named because of confidentiality agreements -- told the Associated Press after the deadline for initial bids passed July 18 that Tribune had narrowed the field to five. Full story
Rays' Longoria to resume hitting
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Tampa Bay Rays rookie third baseman Evan Longoria will resume hitting this week as he continues a rehab program for a broken bone in his right wrist.
The All-Star expects to start throwing Wednesday and hitting within the next few days. He hopes to return around Sept. 1.
Longoria, out since Aug. 8, is hitting .278 with 22 homers and 71 RBI in 104 games. He is considered a leading contender for the AL Rookie of the Year Award. The Rays are in first place in the AL East, leading the Boston Red Sox by 4½ games coming in to Tuesday's games.
Also, closer Troy Percival threw off a bullpen mound for the first time since being sidelined on Aug. 15 by a right knee injury.
Fuentes on bereavement list
SAN FRANCISCO -- The Colorado Rockies placed closer Brian Fuentes on the bereavement list and recalled Steven Register from Triple-A Colorado Springs.
Fuentes earned his 26th save of the season in Colorado's 4-2 win over San Francisco on Monday, but left the team a day later to be with his family. He can stay on the bereavement list three to seven days but Rockies manager Clint Hurdle is not putting a timetable on Fuentes' return.
"When it's family issues I don't push it," Hurdle said. "He just needs to get back to his family and he'll come back when he can."
Register was 5-3 with 16 saves and a 3.32 ERA for Colorado Springs. The right-hander was called up from the minors earlier this month and struck out the only batter he faced against Washington on Aug. 4 before being optioned back.
Jays activate Rolen from DL
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- The Toronto Blue Jays activated third baseman Scott Rolen from the 15-day disabled list.
Rolen was placed on the DL on Aug. 10 with left shoulder tightness. He is expected to work out with the team for a couple days before returning to the starting lineup.
Rolen was hitting .252 with seven homers and 38 RBI in 88 games. He also missed the first 23 games of the season after hurting his finger late in spring training.
Also, Gaston said reliever Jeremy Accardo will not pitch again this season due to a right forearm injury. The right-hander, on the disabled list since May 10, will be examined by Dr. James Andrews.
Tigers purchase contract of Lambert
DETROIT -- The Detroit Tigers purchased the contract of pitcher Chris Lambert from Triple-A Toledo and started him against the Cleveland Indians on Tuesday night.
To make room on the roster for Lambert, Detroit designated right-handed pitcher Francis Beltran for assignment.
The right-handed Lambert was 12-8 with a 3.50 ERA in 26 starts for Toledo. He was making his major league debut against the Indians.
Beltran, purchased from Toledo on Aug. 13, was 1-0 with a 4.85 ERA in 11 games for the Tigers.
Nats place Kearns on DL
WASHINGTON -- The Washington Nationals placed outfielder Austin Kearns on the 15-day disabled list due to a stress fracture in his left foot.
Kearns is expected to miss two to four weeks with the injury, which the team believes was sustained on August 3 when Kearns fouled a ball into his foot. It is the second time Kearns has been on the DL this year -- he missed 38 games after having surgery to remove loose bodies from his right elbow.
Kearns was batting .217 with seven home runs and 32 RBI.
Inventor introduces Radial Bat
LITTLE FALLS, N.J. -- A New Jersey inventor says he has come up with a way to take that aluminum "ping" out of youth baseball and the broken bat out of the national pastime, while making the game a little safer with every swing.
It's the unbreakable wooden bat, at least one that is guaranteed for a year.
Ward Dill unveiled his Radial Bat, promising the revolutionary stick would prevent injuries caused by the shattering of conventional wooden bats while providing a safer alternative to metal bats used in youth leagues and through college.
An MIT graduate with decades of woodworking experience, Dill made his first radial bat in March 2006, about two weeks after making a rosewood vase.
Man sentenced for hate letters
CLEVELAND -- A man who wrote hundreds of threatening letters over 20 years to black and mixed-race men -- including Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas and New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter -- was sentenced to three years and 10 months in prison.
David Tuason apologized in federal court, saying he never meant to hurt anybody. He said he sent the threatening letters because a black man "stole" the girlfriend he planned to marry.
Tuason, 46, pleaded guilty in May to six counts of mailing threatening communications and two counts of threatening interstate communications.
Prosecutors said Tuason, who is of Filipino descent, sent more than 200 hateful letters or e-mails, many to black or mixed-race men seen with white women.
Marlins activate reliever Waechter
ATLANTA -- Reliever Doug Waechter was activated from the 15-day disabled list by the Florida Marlins before the game with the Atlanta Braves.
Waechter was 3-2 with a 3.51 ERA in 39 games before being sidelined by right shoulder inflammation on Aug. 7.
Florida placed left-hander Renyel Pinto on the 15-day DL with a strained hamstring. Pinto appeared in 65 games, going 2-5 with a 4.50 ERA.
