Tom Hicks Close To Selling Rangers

Tom Hicks, the owner of the Texas Rangers since 1998, is on the verge of selling the team to an investment group that includes Hall of Famer and current Rangers executive Nolan Ryan, multiple sources are reporting.

Tom Hicks is close to a deal to sell the Texas Rangers baseball team, the prospective buyers announced early Saturday.

If the sale is completed, Hicks, who also co-owns Premier League club Liverpool, would be one of the biggest investors in the group of about a dozen buyers, but he would have only a minority stake in the team.

Hicks entered into an exclusive 30-day negotiation window on Dec. 15 with Pittsburgh sports attorney Chuck Greenberg's investment group that includes Nolan Ryan, the Rangers' president the past two years.

Hicks Sports Group defaulted early last year on $525 million in loans tied to the Rangers and the NHL's Dallas Stars, which Hicks has owned since 1996. Hicks has said that was a deliberate move to force lenders to renegotiate terms of the deals.

Hicks is also facing financial pressures with Liverpool, which is co-owns with fellow American George Gillett Jr.

Tonight, as the exclusive negotiating period announced on December 15 by Hicks Sports Group (HSG) expires, we are on the verge of an agreement that would provide Tom Hicks the value he seeks and the Texas Rangers the resources to become champions.

We have made extraordinary progress the last couple of weeks and have come too far to walk away now. We are fully committed and prepared to work around the clock if that’s what it takes to reach a final agreement. We are at a point where deals get done as long as both parties share a desire to cross the finish line together. There just isn't much left to resolve.

With the continued cooperation of Tom Hicks and HSG, we are certain an agreement can be finalized so we can immediately get to work on delivering the success this franchise and its fans deserve.