Orioles owner John Angelos agrees to sell team for $1.7 billion in BLOCKBUSTER deal

The Angelos family had been the owners of the Baltimore Orioles since 1993.

Orioles owner John Angelos agrees to sell team for $1.7 billion in BLOCKBUSTER deal

John Angelos (Image via Sports Business Journal)

In a surprising move, the Baltimore Orioles seem to be ushering into a new era. The professional baseball team’s owner John Angelos has agreed to sell the team for a whopping $1.7 billion in a blockbuster deal.

The Angelos family have been the owners of the franchise for the past three decades. They are now planning to sell the team to a group led by two private equity billionaires David Rubenstein and Mike Arougheti.

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As per reports from Puck News, Rubenstein, co-founder of the Carlyle Group, will lead the charge. The 74-year-old is expected to provide higher proportion of money in this deal compared to Arougheti, co-founder Ares Management.

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However, the deal has not been made officially yet. So far neither the Orioles nor the MLB have made an statement regarding this deal. As per the official rules, this deal cannot be made official without the league’s approval.

The Angelos family purchased the Orioles in 1993 for $173 million. They are now looking to sell the team in an amount worth 10-times the sum they paid to acquired it.

Another important thing to note is that Rubenstein group will not become the full owners following the acquisition. They will acquire around 40 per cent stake in the team. The remainder of the stake will be transferred by the Angelos family once longtime owner Peter Angelos passes away.

Orioles legend Cal Ripken Jr. set to be part of new ownership group

Ever since the news of ownership change broke out, the Baltimore Orioles fans have been beaming with joy. The fans had been demanding a change in ownership and now they are finally getting it. On top of that, club legend Cal Ripken Jr. is set to become part of this new ownership group.

Cal Ripken Jr.
Cal Ripken Jr. (Image via Bleacher Report)

The MLB Hall of Famer, a Maryland native, is considered one of the greatest to ever play for the Orioles. He would represent the franchise throughout this entire career. He currently holds the record for the most consecutive games played in the MLB with 2,632, earning him the title of “Baseball’s Iron Man“.

Following the end of his legendary career, Ripken Jr. has remained deeply connected with the local baseball community. He is now set to write another chapter in his glorious Orioles history.

It will now be interesting to see how this deal impacts the club’s ambitions going forward. The O’s stunned the baseball world with their performances last season. A side filled with youngsters would go on to win the divisional title and reach the playoffs for the first time since 2016. They would be hoping to continue this momentum under the new owners.

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