Chuck Greenberg

Charles M. Greenberg

• School Tufts University

• Born ~1961 in Englewood, NJ USA

Biographical Information

Attorney Chuck Greenberg of Pittsburgh, PA was the Chief Executive Officer and managing partner of the Texas Rangers at the time of their first trip to the World Series. On January 23, 2010, he and Hall of Fame pitcher Nolan Ryan headed a group of investors who purchased the team from Tom Hicks for a price said to exceed $500 million. Ryan kept the title of team President, which had been given to him by Hicks a year earlier. The ownership group is named the Rangers Baseball Express. However, the sale became tied up in bankruptcy proceedings surrounding Hicks's default on loans totaling $525 million. Following a Federal Bankruptcy Court ruling on June 22, creditors were given the right to vote on the deal, putting the entire sale in jeopardy and forcing Greenberg and Ryan to bid for the team at a special bankruptcy auction held in US Federal Bankruptcy Court on August 4. After a tense day of bidding, Greenberg's offer emerged as the winner in the early hours of August 5, defeating one by Mark Cuban, owner of the National Basketball Association's Dallas Mavericks. The winning bid included $385 million in cash, and the assumption of many of Hicks's debt to total $593 million overall. The sale received unanimous approval from MLB owners on August 12, bringing the drawn-out saga to an end.

During Greenberg's ownership tenure, the Rangers reached the World Series for the first time in franchise history, losing to the San Francisco Giants in 5 games. Tensions between Greenberg, whose ownership stake was only worth $5 million, and majority owners surfaced during the off-season. Among points of contention were Greenberg's personal involvement in attempting to re-sign free agent P Cliff Lee, which was seen by Ryan and others as excessive and counterproductive - Lee eventually signed with the Philadelphia Phillies - and interference in negotiations to extend General Manager Jon Daniels' contract. Also at issue was Greenberg's unilateral decision to transfer one of the Rangers' minor league affiliates to the Myrtle Beach Pelicans, a team he owned; the decision was seen to be much more beneficial to Greenberg's business interests than to the Rangers' baseball objectives. On March 11, under pressure from other members of the ownership group, Greenberg resigned as CEO and managing partner in favor of Ryan.

Greenberg has had a long association with sports, counting former National Football League quarterback Bernie Kosar and all-time National Hockey League great Mario Lemieux among his clients. In April 2009, he purchased the Altoona Curve of the Eastern League. In addition to his partnership in a law firm, he runs Greenberg Sports Group, a marketing consultant for sports teams and also owns the minor league State College Spikes and Myrtle Beach Pelicans.

His son Jeff Greenberg has been a long-time executive who became General Manager of the Detroit Tigers in 2023.

Related Sites

• Article from mlb.com on the sale of the Rangers to Greenberg
• Article from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram on Greenberg's resignation