Texas Rangers May File Motion Under Seal to Aid Settlement in Sale Dispute

The Texas Rangers, the bankrupt Major League Baseball club, won court permission to file a motion under seal that the team said will help settle some disputes in its Chapter 11 case.

The motion asks the court to overturn or reconsider some decisions in the case, the Rangers said today in a filing in U.S. Bankruptcy court in Fort Worth, Texas. The contents can’t be made public because the settlement contains “confidential and highly-sensitive terms” that would be prejudicial to the team if the motion is denied, the Rangers said.

“The settlement, which provides substantial value to the debtor’s estate, can only be effectuated if the court grants the motion,” the team said in the filing. The filing didn’t specify what the settlement concerns.

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge D. Michael Lynn granted the request.

The Rangers are scheduled to go up for auction next week. A group led by attorney Chuck Greenberg and Hall of Fame pitcher Nolan Ryan has an agreement to buy the team subject to higher bids. Lenders led by JPMorgan Chase & Co. oppose the Greenberg- Ryan deal and the auction process, which they say will chill bidding and doesn’t give interested buyers enough time to put together their best offers.

The case is In re Texas Rangers Baseball Partners, 10- 43400, U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Northern District of Texas (Fort Worth).

To contact the reporter on this story: Andrew Dunn in New York at adunn8@bloomberg.net.

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