Source: A's among three finalists to buy KTRB

The A's and two other interests-- a group of Spanish radio brokers and a deep-pocketed religious broadcast company, (Principle Broadcasting) are the finalists to buy KTRB Radio, the current flagship station of the Athletics and Stanford football, which went into receivership last September and is only moderately functional.

The information, obtained by a reliable local broadcast source, indicated that a decision on who would ultimately win out might be known by the first of the year or even sooner. The source requested anonymity due to the nature of the information.

Various industry sources have placed the price of KTRB at roughly $12 million, including assumable debt.

The A's are eagerly trying to acquire the station, but reportedly do not want to "overpay" at any cost. It is well known that the other investors, notably the religious-oriented Principal group have the available financial means to overpay for a station that has 50,000 watts, if not the best dial position, (and a slew of tower maintenance issues to boot.)

One thing is certain: The A's would like to have their radio broadcast situation handled as soon as possible. Throughout the past decade, the team has been all over the dial and the potential possibility of having to go to another small outlet would be irksome at best.

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