Orioles Owner Peter Angelos said that the team "will
lose about" $10M this season, "but emphasized the losses
won't alter the club's operating philosophy," according to
Richard Justice of the WASHINGTON POST. Angelos, who has
"seldom turned a profit" since acquiring the team in '93,
blamed this season's losses on increasing operation costs,
including having MLB's second-highest payroll at $84M.
Angelos: "Why do I do it? I do it because I want to give
3.7 million fans a winner" (WASHINGTON POST, 5/14).
GIANT SAVIOR: MLB Giants Managing General Partner Peter
Magowan is interviewed in USA TODAY's BASEBALL WEEKLY, and
says that News Corp. Chair Rupert Murdoch and Fox
"misrepresent[ed] themselves" in their quest for the Dodgers
by saying that team payrolls would increase with inflation.
Magowan: "They said they would run the team economically
responsibly. That's what they told baseball. ... Two months
after they said all these things, they did the Mike Piazza
trade. And then we all see what they did in the offseason.
So, I do think we were misled. The Fox people told us that
all divisions of that company were supposed to make money.
Obviously, we now know different" (BASEBALL WEEKLY, 5/12).
SERVICE WITH A SMILE? Blue Jays VP/Marketing Terry Zuk
is planning an attitude "makeover" for the SkyDome staff
after his "eye-opening tour" he had at Kauffman Stadium.
Zuk: "To begin with, people are treated nice [in K.C.].
They're pleasant, they're friendly. It shows me we have a
lot of work to do, and we don't have to go on treating
people like we have been doing" (TORONTO SUN, 5/14).
WINNING ISN'T EVERYTHING: Though the Phillies have the
fourth-best record in the NL at 19-14, their average
attendance based on tickets sold ranks third from the
bottom, ahead of only the Marlins and the Expos. Phillies
GM Ed Wade, on the small crowds: "I realize school is still
in session and the Flyers and Sixers have done pretty well.
I just think our fans missed some pretty good baseball in
April" (PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, 5/14).
