Wind Talkers: Colangelo To Meet With Sam Zell About Cubs

Colangelo To Meet With Tribune Co. Bidder About Acquiring Cubs

Suns Chair & CEO Jerry Colangelo “reiterated his interest in buying the Cubs” Wednesday, saying he plans to meet with prospective Tribune Co. Owner Sam Zell next week, according to Neil Hayes of the CHICAGO SUN-TIMES. Colangelo said on WSCR-AM, “It’s appropriate to at least start my process in terms of getting to know him a little bit.” Zell has indicated he might sell the Cubs and Wrigley Field independent of each other, and Colangelo said, “That’s something I need to get a lot more information on relative to the economic considerations” (CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, 4/5).

PACKAGE DEAL: Real estate developer William Marovitz and TMB Industries Chair Thomas Begel both said they would make bids for the Cubs only if the deal includes Wrigley Field. Marovitz, whose wife is Playboy Enterprises CEO Christie Hefner, said, “I would never be part of a Cubs ownership that didn’t involve Wrigley Field.” He added of the $700M figure quoted by analysts, “If the due diligence and the facts and the documents that we see merit it, we would be able to pay a figure in that range.” Begel did not disclose the names of any partners in his group but said that they are “ready to use equity and debt to finance the purchase.” However, he added that Wrigley “must be part of the deal ... whatever the price.” Begel: “There’s no way they’re going to sell the Cubs without selling Wrigley Field.” REUTERS’ Klayman & MacMillan reported other potential bidders include CDW Corp. Founder Michael Krasny, Levy Restaurants Chair & CEO Larry Levy and Illinois-based wire and cable maker A-Z Industries President Jim Anixter (REUTERS, 4/4).

Cuban Discusses Cubs Situation On CNBC’s “Mad Money”

MARK CUB-AN? Mavericks Owner Mark Cuban appeared on CNBC’s “Mad Money” Wednesday night and said it is “too early to tell” if he would bid on the Cubs. Cuban said, “When you make any acquisition in any business you’ve got to know what you’re buying first, and you don’t buy what’s not for sale. ... It’s not for sale until the end of the year. Now, if they want to come to me after the baseball season, I’ll talk.” Meanwhile, CNBC’s Jim Cramer asked if Cuban would recommend buying shares of a major sports league or team if they were to ever go public. Cuban said of individual teams, “It depends. A team like the Cubs, the Yankees, are iconic and so they have such a broad fan base it might make some sense. But in terms of a team like the Mavericks ... or the Pacers, it’s tough because winning is sometimes more important than making a dollar” (“Mad Money,” CNBC, 4/4). While Cuban would be allowed to own the Mavericks and Cubs at the same time, CNBC’s Darren Rovell cited sources who believe “he won’t do that. He always has totally immersed himself, and he won’t be able to concentrate on two teams in different cities at the same time.” Rovell added Cuban “won’t buy a team if he can’t make money off them. I don’t think he can make money given the size of Wrigley (and) the restrictions on what he can do with it” (“Squawk Box,” 4/5).