Baltimore Orioles Reportedly Being Sold to Two Billionaires

Baltimore Orioles owner John Angelos is reportedly set to sell the team for $1.725 billion.

Baltimore billionaire David Rubenstein from the Carlyle Group and Ares Management billionaire cofounder Mike Arougheti lead the group that will buy the team, according to Puck. Rubenstein has already been linked to the deal and is set to become the franchise’s primary leader, known in the league as a “control person,” while the level of Arougheti’s participation isn’t immediately known, John Ourand reported. Orioles Hall of Famer Cal Ripken Jr. is also part of the group, according to The Baltimore Banner.

The group will own about 40% of the Orioles, then buy the rest after 94-year-old patriarch Peter Angelos passes, per Ourand, who said the timeline on the deal isn’t decided.

The Banner reported that Peter Angelos had wanted to pass the team to his wife, who could sell it after his death. Family matters went public with several lawsuits that were dropped between the two brothers and their mother.

MLB owners meet for their annual meeting next week in Orlando. That’s when they’ll hear more about the sale and must approve it for the deal to proceed.

The Orioles have not responded to after-business hours FOS requests for comment.

The future of the Mid-Atlantic Sports Network, which holds the local broadcast rights for the Orioles and the Washington Nationals (which own a quarter of the network), still remains unclear. The two teams are behind schedule: they took 12 years to decide the 2012-2016 rights, and only recently agreed to the 2016-2021 rights.