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Mandalay buying Oklahoma City, selling Hagerstown

The minor-league giant is reportedly making some changes in its portfolio, returning to the Pacific Coast League via the Oklahoma City RedHawks, a transaction partially funded by an inpending sale of the Sally League Suns.

Mandalay Sports Entertainment is in the process of buying the Oklahoma City Redhawks (Class AAA; Pacific Coast League) and is selling the Hagerstown Suns (Low Class A; Sally League) to partially fund the transaction, we're told by baseball insiders with direct knowledge of the deals.

Mandalay Sports Entertainment — through its Mandalay Baseball subsidiary — is already one of the the largest owners in Minor League Baseball in terms of franchises owned. Mandalay has majority ownership of the Frisco RoughRiders (Class AA; Texas League), the Erie SeaWolves (Class AA; Eastern League), the Suns and the Dayton Dragons (Low Class A; Midwest League) and partial ownership in the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees (Class AAA; International League). The firm also manages the Staten Island Yankees (short season; NY-Penn League) and consults with the Winston-Salem Dash (High Class A; Carolina League). The firm also offering consulting services to other minor-league and summer-collegiate teams.

The Oklahoma City RedHawks have been on the market for some time now. Late last fall Art Solomon, the owner of the New Hampshire Fisher Cats (Class AA; Eastern League) and the Bowling Green Hot Rods (Low Class A; Sally League), had final negotiations for the purchase of the RedHawks, but that effort was scrapped.

For Mandalay, the Redhawks purchase is a return to the Pacific Coast League. For years the firm owned the Las Vegas 51s before selling two years ago to a local ownership group.

The Erie SeaWolves are reportedly on the market as well. No word on the buyer of the Suns.

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