Baseball Officials Set Rules For Mariners

Baseball officials have told the Seattle Mariners that they must first get approval from the sport’s leadership before starting negotiations with potential buyers.

M’s owners, saying they were frustrated with the slow process of gaining approval for a new ballpark, announced Saturday the team was for sale.

“Their intent to sell is understandable and we support them,” A.L. president Gene Budig said Wednesday. “Major league baseball shares their keen disappointment. Owners of the Mariners have shown their intent and commitment throughout the process. They felt that they were without options.”

Budig and acting commissioner Bud Selig sent the Mariners a letter telling them the team’s situation will be discussed when the sport’s ruling executive council meets Jan. 14 at Scottsdale, Ariz.

Seattle’s current ownership, which bought the team from Jeff Smulyan’s group on June 30, 1992, for $106 million, is headed by Hiroshi Yamauchi, president of Nintendo Co. Ltd. of Kyoto, Japan.