Chuck Greenberg is vowing to fight a bankruptcy court ordered delay of the Texas Rangers’ confirmation hearing from July 9th to July 22nd. Bankruptcy judge Michael Lynn ordered the delay so that the newly-appointed chief restructuring officer William Snider would have a chance to get up to speed on the Texas Rangers’ bankruptcy plan and give him a chance to attend a mediation session that’s scheduled for July 16th. But Greenberg is against the delay saying that it would do “irreparable damage to the franchise” because it would not allow the team to add significant people to the payroll by the trade deadline.
“A delay of 13 days in the confirmation hearings would make it impossible to complete the sale before the deadline,” Greenberg said. “When we entered into this sales agreement in January, it was with every intention of being aggressive at the trade deadline. The club would be at a tremendous disadvantage. Any delay that precludes the closing of the sale by the trade deadline does irreparable damage to the franchise. We respect the desire to all the homework they want, but every day Rome is burning. We can’t sit idly by.”
According to Greenberg, after the confirmation of the sale is approved, there would still be a 14-day waiting period before the deal could be closed. If the confirmation hearing goes forward on July 9, the Rangers could begin to make plans to add payroll and still have time to act before the deadline. If not, the club would essentially be prohibited from adding significant payroll.
Greenberg has also accused the lenders of purposely maneuvering during the team’s bankruptcy to create delays and force the baseball team’s hand. However, the bankruptcy judge in the case has insisted that the delay of the confirmation hearing is necessary to assure that the case is administered properly.