LOS ANGELES -- The owner of the reigning NBA champions will not be the next owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Mark Cuban was eliminated from the Dodgers' ownership sweepstakes Friday, along with baseball executive and former agent Dennis Gilbert, according to two people familiar with the process but not authorized to discuss it.
At least eight bidders advanced to the second round Friday, including a group led by Magic Johnson and veteran baseball executive Stan Kasten and another headed by local developer Rick Caruso and former Dodgers manager Joe Torre.
East Coast hedge fund giant Steven Cohen, former Dodgers owner Peter O'Malley and St. Louis Rams owner Stan Kroenke also are believed to have advanced, as well as a joint bid between investor and civic leader Stanley Gold and the family of the late Roy Disney.
Frank McCourt, the Dodgers' outgoing owner, has pledged to identify the winning bidder by April 1 and complete the sale of the team by April 30.
The remaining parties will be investigated by Major League Baseball, with each bidder paying $25,000 to cover the cost of an MLB investigation.
MLB has agreed to approve up to 10 bidders, after which McCourt can conduct a final round of bidding and select the winner.
Cuban, the owner of the NBA champion Dallas Mavericks, previously pursued the purchase of the Chicago Cubs and Texas Rangers.
Cuban and a partner finished second in the bidding for the Rangers, won by a group led by Nolan Ryan at $593 million.
"I don't think the Dodgers franchise is worth twice what the Rangers are worth," Cuban told the Los Angeles Times in November.
Cuban did not respond to email messages Friday.
McCourt and his advisers expect the Dodgers to sell for at least $1.5 billion.
"The preliminary round of bidding has underscored the robust nature of the sales process," the Dodgers said in a statement late Friday, "the significant purchase opportunity which the Dodgers represent, and the enormous value that the sale of the Dodgers, including their media assets, will generate."
