Mcclatchy Set To Name Principal Buc Backers

Kevin McClatchy, still searching for the money to buy the Pittsburgh Pirates, may reveal four or five of his principal backers by Thursday.

McClatchy, of Sacramento, Calif., has until Friday to raise the estimated $85 million to $100 million needed to buy the money-losing team.

McClatchy hopes to met Friday with some or all of the 10 current Pirates owners.

But McClatchy, 32, said Tuesday he would willingly sign a 25-year lease binding him to Pittsburgh should financing for a new, baseball-only stadium be funded within four years.

Under terms of the Three Rivers Stadium lease he negotiated last week with Mayor Tom Murphy, McClatchy could relocate the Pirates if his losses reach $20 million or funds for the new stadium aren’t raised by 1999.

If McClatchy can’t close a deal, two more potential owners - Norton Herrick of Florida and William L. Collins III of Washington, D.C. are poised to make bids.