Major League Baseball’s ownership committee has unanimously approved the sale of a controlling stake in the Orioles to private equity billionaire David Rubenstein in a key step toward finalizing the purchase, a source with direct knowledge of the committee’s actions confirmed to The Baltimore Sun.
The agreement between Rubenstein, who is set to become the Orioles’ “control person” in the eyes of MLB, and the Angelos family, which has owned a controlling stake in the ballclub since 1993, still needs to be approved by the league’s owners. At least 23 of the 30 MLB owners must vote to approve the deal for it to be finalized.
The source spoke on condition of anonymity because the approval has not been officially announced.
The ownership committee, which is chaired by Philadelphia Phillies owner John Middleton, approved the agreement by vote of a nine-member panel. Typically, the committee prepares a report and the sale is then voted on by an eight-owner executive council. Orioles chairman and CEO John Angelos, currently the team’s control person, is not a member of the council, which is chaired by Commissioner Rob Manfred.
It’s unclear when the final vote would be held, although a regularly scheduled meeting is not required and can come in a conference or video call.
An Orioles spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment. An MLB spokesperson declined to comment.
Alan Rifkin, a former Orioles attorney, said in a statement, “Baltimore has been privileged to have such great stewards of the Orioles as Edward Bennett Williams, Larry Lucchino, and Peter Angelos. David Rubenstein and his colleagues are the next and best stewards. The future is bright with David at the helm.”
Sources previously told The Sun that the sale is expected to be approved on a quicker timeline than most — perhaps before opening day March 28 — given Rubenstein, co-founder of the Carlyle Group and a Baltimore native, is a well-known public figure who has long eyed buying an MLB club. Such approvals — involving scrutiny of buyers’ backgrounds and their financing — typically take several months.
In late January, the Angelos family reached an agreement to sell the Orioles to a group led by Rubenstein in a deal that values the club at $1.725 billion. In 1993, now-ailing family patriarch Peter Angelos, 94, bought the club for $173 million. Rubenstein’s net worth is $3.7 billion, according to Forbes.
Rubenstein’s group includes other businessmen, Maryland leaders and philanthropists, including Orioles legend Cal Ripken Jr., former New York City mayor and billionaire Michael Bloomberg, former Baltiomore mayor Kurt Schmoke, Basketball Hall of Famer Grant Hill and Ares Management co-founder Michael Arougheti. The group will initially assume a 40% ownership stake in the Orioles with an agreement to purchase the remaining equity upon the death of Peter Angelos.
The announcement came a month after the Orioles and the state of Maryland ended their yearslong lease saga by reaching a deal in December just weeks before the previous agreement was set to expire. The lease guarantees the club will remain in Baltimore for at least 15 years, but could be for 30 years or more.
While the lease isn’t seen as a factor as MLB considers the sale, how to handle the Mid-Atlantic Sports Network as part of the agreement could still be a hurdle. The Orioles and Washington Nationals have long feuded over MASN and a 2005 television rights agreement with MLB that is “unconditionally bound,” the deal states. Since the Montreal Expos moved to Washington to become the Nationals, encroaching on Baltimore’s media territory, MLB agreed to an arrangement that has seen the Orioles receive a portion of the Nationals’ television profits. In total, the Orioles have received at least 70% of profits from MASN, which airs both Orioles and Nationals games.
It’s unclear what role MASN will play as MLB considers the sale to Rubenstein, but Manfred said during last month’s owners meetings in Orlando, Florida, that “change always produces an opportunity.”
Rubenstein, 74, has been spotted in Sarasota, Florida, at least twice during Orioles spring training, attending games at Ed Smith Stadium, sitting next to John Angelos in a suite, walking the concourse and engaging with fans. Earlier this week, he toured Oriole Park, posting photos of himself on social media taking a fake swing of the bat and posing with fans.