Rainiers up for sale; local buyer sought

TACOMA - A death in his family has forced Tacoma Rainiers owner George Foster to make a change in his life. That includes selling the Class AAA franchise.

Foster, who has owned the team for nine years, announced yesterday he has put it up for sale, perhaps setting off alarms with both Tacoma city officials as well as the Seattle Mariners. The Rainiers have been the Mariners' AAA affiliate for six years.

"Unfortunately, my brother passing away has changed our direction a bit so that my wife (Sue) and I have to spend more time in the poultry industry," said Foster. His family operates Foster Farms, a national distributor of chickens that is based in Modesto, Calif. George and Sue Foster say they must be more involved with the everyday operation of the chicken business and cannot devote as much time to the Rainiers.

Foster said his decision to sell is not related to his failed request to the city for action on improving 40-year-old Cheney Stadium.

"This team needs and deserves a full-time owner that can spend the time necessary to build upon our successes," Foster said.

The city has a lease with the team that runs until 2005 and would bind any buyer. The Rainiers and the Mariners also renewed their two-year working agreement last winter.

Mariner farm director Benny Looper said the Cheney playing surface is one of the best in the Pacific Coast League, "but we had some concerns about the stadium. We'd like to see some improvements and we expressed that this winter to George and the city. We're hoping they can stay there, and have a local group purchase the team."

That is the hope for Foster, as well. Asked if a potential buyer might be deterred by the age of the stadium or the lease, he said, "I think if they really look at facts, they can't go anywhere until 2005. With new local ownership that will keep it here, Tacoma baseball can be greater than it has ever been."

Looper said there are no critical issues from the Mariners' perspective. The short drive down I-5 is a significant advantage to them.

"It's a great location for us," Looper said. "The players don't have to be uprooted. They can stay in one spot. It's easy for us to see games. I've probably seen 35 games this year. If I'm a Mariner fan, I would think it would be interesting to go to Tacoma from time to time to see what's coming up. By the same token, Rainiers fans can certainly follow those guys in the big leagues. Maybe I'm naive because I'm a fan, but I'm in the business as well. I don't see a negative."

But there are negatives from the Rainiers' perspective, beyond the status of the stadium. Attendance has declined this year, to an average of less than 3,000 a game. This is in a league in which Memphis and Sacramento - with new stadiums - average more than 11,000. The opening of an outdoor big-league ballpark, Safeco Field, may have been partly responsible for eroding that fan base.

"Even before Safeco, Tacoma was its own entity," Foster said. "We really wondered how the opening of Safeco would affect us. We didn't know if the fans would leave here for Safeco and never come back. (But) I think the fan base here is unique enough to sustain this team.

"This is a 40-year-old facility that needs some improvements to make it more fan-friendly and safer. But fans are generally happy with the facility as it is today. I don't know what impact a new facility would have on attendance."

Foster bought the team in 1991 for approximately $5 million. It was then known as the Tacoma Tigers and was affiliated with Oakland, but after the 1995 season became aligned with Seattle and selected the Rainiers name. Foster's asking price was not disclosed, but the Portland franchise recently sold for $12 million.