Donald Watkins

Donald Watkins, the Alabama businessman who has been the longest-running Disney suitor among those interested in buying the Angels and who has insisted that he didn't need partners to close the deal, was recently rejected when he asked the Nederlander family if they would be interested in merging their pursuits, a person connected to the sale process said Saturday. Interested parties are expected to submit bids to Lehman Bros.

Donald Watkins, the Alabama businessman who has been the longest-running Disney suitor among those interested in buying the Angels and who has insisted that he didn't need partners to close the deal, was recently rejected when he asked the Nederlander family if they would be interested in merging their pursuits, a person connected to the sale process said Saturday. Interested parties are expected to submit bids to Lehman Bros.

The baseball labor agreement reached Friday enhances the chance for Disney to sell the Angels but further diminishes the likelihood that the buyer will be Alabama businessman Donald Watkins, who has pursued the purchase of the money-losing team for six months. Disney has not granted exclusive negotiating rights to Watkins, and baseball sources continue to express reservations about his ability to afford the team and whatever operating losses might follow.

The baseball labor agreement reached Friday enhances the chance for Disney to sell the Angels but further diminishes the likelihood that the buyer will be Alabama businessman Donald Watkins, who has pursued the purchase of the money-losing team for six months. Disney has not granted exclusive negotiating rights to Watkins, and baseball sources continue to express reservations about his ability to afford the team and whatever operating losses might follow.

Donald Watkins, the Alabama businessman whose attempt to purchase the Minnesota Twins has stalled, is now pursuing the Angels. In the April edition of a newsletter published by Watkins, an article says he "made his proposal to purchase another [Major League Baseball] team in early March." The article does not identify the team or detail the proposal, but two sources confirmed the Angels, who are owned by the Walt Disney Co., are the team.

A day after the Minnesota Twins declared that Donald Watkins had not demonstrated the financial capacity to purchase their team, a highly placed baseball official said Thursday that the Alabama businessman has not proved that he can afford the Angels either, or any other team. "We still don't know what Donald Watkins has [financially] and what he doesn't have," the official said. Watkins met with Disney officials in March and subsequently made a preliminary offer of $250 million for the Angels.

The photograph comes from another time, an unthinkable place, but Donald Watkins believes its subjects speak to him. They are his mother's ancestors, slaves who belonged to an Irish family in Clinton, Miss. The owners taught them and their children to read and documented their existence in that 1857 photo, which Watkins keeps in a place of pride in his bedroom. Every day, before he goes to work and before he goes to sleep, he asks them if he has made them proud.

An FBI official denied that Auburn supporters are using the agency to discredit former Tiger football player Eric Ramsey, who has accused the school of breaking NCAA rules. Ramsey's attorney, Donald Watkins of Birmingham, Ala., said the FBI has been investigating extortion allegations against Ramsey and his wife at the urging of Auburn boosters.

Former HealthSouth Corp. Chief Executive Richard Scrushy finalized his legal team to defend him against the federal government's charges that he deliberately inflated the company's earnings. Scrushy named Thomas Sjoblom and Abbe David Lowell of Chadbourne & Parke to defend him at trial. Donald Watkins, who was Scrushy's lead attorney, will remain a legal advisor.

An attorney for Auburn Coach Pat Dye, Sam Franklin, Tuesday accused a former player and his attorney of creating a "media mirage" by releasing portions of secretly recorded tapes. He called on them to release all the tapes to the NCAA. But the attorney for former defensive back Eric Ramsey said the school should not be so eager for all the tapes to be released.

The photograph comes from another time, an unthinkable place, but Donald Watkins believes its subjects speak to him. They are his mother's ancestors, slaves who belonged to an Irish family in Clinton, Miss. The owners taught them and their children to read and documented their existence in that 1857 photo, which Watkins keeps in a place of pride in his bedroom. Every day, before he goes to work and before he goes to sleep, he asks them if he has made them proud.

A day after the Minnesota Twins declared that Donald Watkins had not demonstrated the financial capacity to purchase their team, a highly placed baseball official said Thursday that the Alabama businessman has not proved that he can afford the Angels either, or any other team. "We still don't know what Donald Watkins has [financially] and what he doesn't have," the official said. Watkins met with Disney officials in March and subsequently made a preliminary offer of $250 million for the Angels.

Donald Watkins, the Alabama businessman whose attempt to purchase the Minnesota Twins has stalled, is now pursuing the Angels. In the April edition of a newsletter published by Watkins, an article says he "made his proposal to purchase another [Major League Baseball] team in early March." The article does not identify the team or detail the proposal, but two sources confirmed the Angels, who are owned by the Walt Disney Co., are the team.