Liberty Media has reached a deal to buy the Atlanta Braves baseball franchise from Time Warner (TWX), according to reports. The WSJ (subscription required) says that Liberty has been negotiating for more than one year on this. There is probably a time window that needs to be kept on this since spring training is imminent.

There were other reports and CNBC also said this could face approval 'hurdles' from Major League Baseball. That is unknown, and at the end of the day it does end up being one media player or another owning the team.

Time Warner acquired the team as part of the booty when it acquired Turner Broadcasting for some $7.5 billion back in 1996. This would be viewed much differently if it was actually Ted Turner selling the team to a larger media conglomerate. We'll likely know more details by Tuesday or Wednesday on this one.

Jon Ogg is a partner in 24/7 Wall St., LLC; he does not own securities in the companies he covers.

Time Warner plans to sell Atlanta Braves to Liberty originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 13 Feb 2007 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

It just goes to show: Time Warner is such a huge conglomerate and its stock is so immovable that the news and its price have no relation. Take today, for instance.

On a day when the big news included the company's beloved baseball team, the Atlanta Braves, in dead last in the team's division ("I'm just looking for a score that has a 'W' in front of it," said GM John Schuerholz "calmly") and the salacious rumors of CFO Wayne Pace's role as "sugar daddy" to a high-class prostitute, the stock was up 15 cents, nearly 1%, to $17.11.

Perhaps it's true, as one commenter noted, that it's a good thing Pace is [alleged to be] getting more love -- "If he's happy in the bedroom he'll perform better in the boardroom. As a stock holder, I think maybe she should bring over her friends and make sure he's extra happy."

Time Warner after the bell 06-19-06: Braves last, Pace in trouble, stock up? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 19 Jun 2006 19:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.