Representatives of professional baseball clubs accepted Monday a plan by retailer Daiei Inc. to sell its entire stake in the Daiei Hawks baseball club to Internet service provider Softbank Corp.
Masashi Tsunoda, representative of the Daiei Hawks, explained the plan to his counterparts from other pro baseball teams at their meeting in Tokyo, baseball officials said.
The representatives decided to postpone the deadline for approving the new Hawks' entry into the baseball community until the end of January, from the originally set Nov. 30, as procedures for transferring the team from retailer Daiei to Softbank will take time, the officials said.
Daiei is expected to submit the plan to sell the Hawks by November, which will be followed by a hearing for Softbank on its financial condition on Dec. 6.
The representatives plan to convene a meeting Dec. 20 to approve the plan, the officials said, adding the owners of the clubs may formalize the plan Dec. 24.
Last Friday, Daiei President Toshio Hasumi and Softbank President Masayoshi Son agreed on the deal.