Basketball legend and HIV-positive icon Magic Johnson put in a bid to purchase baseball's troubled franchise, the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Johnson is working with Guggenheim Partners CEO Mark Walter and former Washington Nationals president Stan Kasten to purchase the team. Last year, Johnson sold his partial stake in the Los Angeles Lakers, the team he led to victory in the 1980s and 1990s. Many speculated that the move would lead to him heading toward a different sporting franchise.
Kasten was president of the Atlanta Braves for 16 years before heading to the Washington Nationals for five years, stepping down from his position as president at the end of the 2010 season.
If the deal is approved, Johnson would become the first black and first openly HIV-positive team owner in Major League Baseball. As The Hollywood Reporter points out, it would be fitting for Johnson to co-own the Dodgers, as they were the first team to break the "color barrier" when Jackie Robinson was signed onto the team in 1947.
The Los Angeles Times reports that outgoing co-owner Frank McCourt will select his successor.
"It's somebody who is a huge baseball fan, who loves this community and is willing to commit to this community and put everything they have into it," McCourt said last month, "and bring a world championship to L.A."
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