Focus Turns To Cuban, Colangelo As Potential Cubs Suitors

Cuban Among High-Profile Individuals Seen As Possible Cubs Suitors

With the Tribune Co. putting the Cubs up for sale as part of the overall sale of the company to Sam Zell, “speculation centered around several big names,” including Suns Chair & CEO Jerry Colangelo and Mavericks Owner Mark Cuban, according to Greg Johnson of the L.A. TIMES. Some Chicago-area execs, including AHL Wolves Owner Don Levin, “also are believed to be interested.” SportsCorp President Marc Ganis: “If Mark Cuban does decide he’s interested, he’ll prove to be a very formidable competitor. He’s a very serious player. And Jerry Colangelo is pretty much looked upon as the gold standard in Chicago because of all that he’s accomplished” (L.A. TIMES, 4/3). The WALL STREET JOURNAL’s Darren Everson notes Donald Trump and Grizzlies Majority Owner Michael Heisley are also “among those who have indicated an interest in the past.” It is “widely assumed that Wrigley Field ... will be included as well” (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 4/3). Tribune Co. will also sell its 25% stake in Comcast SportsNet (Mult., 4/3).

Speculation Has Colangelo As One Of Leading Candidates To Buy Cubs

PRIMARY CANDIDATES: Colangelo: “I’ve already had a few calls about that from financial people if I’d be interested. ... This is what I anticipated, that they’d be sold after the 2007 season. So I’ve put this on the shelf, and I’ll wait and see what will transpire” (CHICAGOTRIBUNE.com, 4/2). When asked about Cuban’s potential interest, Selig said, “I haven’t met him yet, so I’m not going to comment on his personality” (MLB.com, 4/2). But White Sox & Bulls Chair Jerry Reinsdorf noted NBA teams voted 29-1 to approve Cuban’s purchase of the Mavericks in ‘00, and when asked if he was the dissenter, he laughed and said, “Well, you would have to figure that out.” In Illinois, Mike Spellman writes that “one factor that isn’t on [Cuban’s] side is the fact that he’s not local.” Selig added, “When viable local ownership is available, you bet — you always like to see local ownership” (DAILY HERALD, 4/3). In Chicago, Jay Mariotti writes Cuban’s “obstacle in buying the Cubs is the seventysomething boys’ club that wields power in baseball. Does anyone really think Bud Selig, Jerry Reinsdorf and the gang would approve a sale to a punky rabble-rouser? ... Realistically, [Colangelo is] a more suitable ownership front man” (CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, 4/3). The TRIBUNE’s Mike Downey makes his case against Cuban (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 4/3).

OTHER INTERESTED PARTIES: Galatioto Sports Principal Sal Galatioto said of the Cubs sale, “There will be a huge interest by high-net-worth individuals. This isn’t just a regional brand; it’s a national brand, one of the most prestigious franchises.” TMB Industries Chair Thomas Begel, who has put together a group interested in purchasing the team, said, “There’s not a great income stream (in baseball), but look at the asset appreciation” (ESPN.com, 4/2). More Begel: “I’ve been talking to [Tribune Co.] for a number of years because I always felt the Cubs were not a strategic part of the company’s long term. The Tribune Company is primarily a media company, and frankly they’ve come under a lot of criticism for holding the Cubs. And the Cubs certainly have not been successful under their ownership” (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 4/3). Former Cubs Chair Andy McKenna is “mentioned as capable of putting together an investor group,” and sources said that Reyes Holdings CEO Chris Reyes “might consider a minority position” with the team (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 4/3).

FINDING VALUE: Smith College sports economist Andrew Zimbalist said that the Cubs could sell for $500-600M “even without Wrigley.” In Chicago, David Greising writes the Comcast stake is “believed to be worth at least” $50M, while Wrigley would be “expected to add as much as $90[M] to the asking price.” Sources said that Zell “believes Wrigley might have more value sold separately from the Cubs.” One option “may be to sell Wrigley, and then allow the ballpark’s new owner to lease it to the team’s new owner” (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 4/3). The Tribune Co. bought the Cubs in ’81 for $20.5M, and a baseball official late last year “said a Wall Street acquaintance told him that Tribune was valuing the Cubs at about $1[B].” One investment banker said that the team’s pretax value “could be as high as” $800M. In November, Merrill Lynch analyst Lauren Rich Fine said that the “most relevant figure was the value of the franchise after taxes has been paid on a sale, which she estimated at” $450M. The $700M paid for the Red Sox in ’02 is the record in MLB (L.A. TIMES, 4/3). Reinsdorf, asked to comment on the reported $600-700M range, said, “Yeah, it’ll be up there” (DAILY SOUTHTOWN, 4/3). The Washington Post’s Frank Ahrens said the Cubs will probably sell for [$580-700M], “depending on how people value that big contract they gave to Alfonso Soriano in the off-season. ... It’s an easy asset to get rid of, and it’s an easy way to pay down some debt real quickly” (“Newshour,” PBS, 4/2).

TIMETABLE: The Tribune Co. said it plans to complete the sale after the ’07 season. Any sale requires the approval of MLB team owners, which “typically lengthens the process” to 6-12 months (N.Y. TIMES, 4/3). But Selig “expects a new owner to be in place” by the start of next season. Selig: “Given the timetables that I’ve heard, and the discussions I’ve already had, I think there’s a pretty good chance of that” (MLB.com, 4/2). Selig said Zell would not have to sell his stake in the White Sox. Selig: “He’s not going to own the Cubs. ... There are other owners at various times who have owned clubs and bought clubs, and I always give them a little time to sell” (DAILY SOUTHTOWN, 4/3).

Tribune Co. To Include Wrigley Field In Sale Of Cubs?

BUSINESS AS USUAL: The TRIBUNE’s Phil Rogers notes it might be March before the team changes hands, “which might tie” the hands of GM Jim Hendry in the offseason. But it is “fair to assume that whoever takes over the franchise” will be “eager to show he means business” (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 4/3). Cubs President John McDonough in a statement said, “Our mission has not changed. The goal is to win a World Series” (MLB.com, 4/2). Hendry: “The Tribune is going to run the team this year, and I’ve been assured that we’re going to run it the way that we planned” (N.Y. TIMES, 4/3). More Hendry: “If we need something along the way, we’ll be able to add it” (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 4/3). Cubs P Carlos Zambrano “appeared to be close” to a five-year, $80-85M extension when he gave his agent, Barry Praver, “permission to extend indefinitely his Monday deadline for completing talks.” But it “appears the extension was tied to the anticipation that a Tribune Co. deal could snag the process.” Zambrano said that he “had no knowledge of that, but a team source confirmed the issues were related” (CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, 4/3).

NO TEARS IN WRIGLEYVILLE: Zimbalist said of the team being put up for sale, “This is probably good news for Cubs fans. I don’t think Tribune Co. has done a lot positive for the club” (DAILY SOUTHTOWN, 4/3). In Chicago, Dan McGrath writes “because the product was so often inferior, critics came to view Tribune Co. as a bumbling operator, more interested in the balance sheet than the baseball despite a payroll that frequently ranked within baseball’s top tier.” The Cubs have had 19 losing seasons in 26 years under Tribune Co., a record that “makes the attendance figures — three straight seasons of 3 million-plus — that much more remarkable” (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 4/3). The CHICAGO TRIBUNE’s Rick Morrissey writes new ownership “has to be better than the last 98 years of incompetence, right? To anyone who knows history, the answer is: No, it doesn’t. ... But this is a good day for the people who have been clamoring for new owners almost since the day Tribune Co. bought the Cubs” (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 4/3).