Seattle Mariners CEO, Howard Lincoln, announced that he will retire. With the news of Lincoln’s retirement also came the plan for Nintendo of America to sell its majority stake of the team. The group purchasing that majority stake will be led by current minority owner John Stanton. Lincoln, 76, announced his retirement after 17 years as CEO for the Mariners, 24 years in total with the organization. Lincoln started his involvement with the Mariners in 1992 when he became a member of the board of directors for The Baseball Club of Seattle, LP.
During Lincoln’s 24 year tenure, the franchise went from being valued at $100 million in 1992 to over $1 billion in 2016. Lincoln was instrumental in keeping the Mariners in Seattle, as well as negotiating with the city to build Safeco Field. He stepped down from his position as chairman of Nintendo of America in 2000 to concentrate fully on the ball club. In the 16 years that followed, the Mariners tied a major-league record 116 wins in 2001, and in 2012 saw Felix Hernandez pitch the first perfect game in franchise history.
New chairman and CEO, John Stanton, is also chairman of the board at the internet company Clear (formerly Clearwire), and currently serves on the board of directors for Microsoft. He previously served as chairman and CEO of VoiceStream Wireless, which later became T-Mobile. Stanton is no stranger to the Seattle pro sports scene, having been a member of former SuperSonics owner Howard Schultz’s ownership group. Stanton made his priority as CEO clear in this team statement: “My goal and the goal of the entire Mariners ownership and management team is to win a World Series. I believe that the Mariners are well positioned to achieve that goal and it will be my honor to lead the organization.”
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