Moores Reaches Agreement To Sell Padres To Moorad-Led Group
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Moorad Reaches
Deal To Sell Padres |
Padres Owner John Moores has reached an agreement to sell the team to a California-based ownership group led by former D'Backs General Partner & CEO Jeff Moorad. The sale is expected to close with Moorad assuming the role of Padres CEO by Opening Day of the '09 MLB season, and Moorad's group will complete the purchase of the franchise over a period of up to five years (Padres). Padres CEO Sandy Alderson yesterday in a statement said he "will be leaving the organization ... upon the closing of the sale." But Moorad yesterday said that other than Alderson, "no other changes are immediately forthcoming." Moorad added Moores "will continue as the chairman of the club and in his role as control person of the club on various committees and boards and at the owners meetings." In San Diego, Bill Center reports while the sale "could be completed within the next year or drawn out over five years, the projected completion period is about three years." Moorad declined to address "why the sale is being carried out over a long period, but it is believed the process will allow Moorad's group time to complete financing." Moorad would not reveal other members of his ownership group, nor the final purchase price, but Center notes the "final sale valuation of the club should top $500[M] with an initial payment of about $150[M] going to" Moores and his wife, Becky, upon closing. Part of that $500M will be the team's $240M debt service "from the construction of Petco Park -- $145[M] of which is secured in an 8[%] bond that cannot be prepaid." Center notes 75% of MLB owners "have to approve the installment sale," and Moorad "still must divest himself of his 12[%] interest" in the D'Backs (SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE, 2/4).
INSIDE THE NUMBERS: In California, Dan Hayes cites a source as saying that Moorad's group currently is "purchasing one-third" of the Padres and the deal "could approach" $550M (NORTH COUNTY TIMES, 2/4). MLB.com's Barry Bloom reported Moorad possesses a 20% general partnership stake in the D'Backs, worth about $70M. D'Backs Managing General Partner Ken Kendrick earlier this month said that Moorad's stake "probably will be absorbed by the remaining four Arizona general partners." Moorad previously said of his ownership group, "I'm piecing together a select group of friends and others. It will include several individuals from the San Diego area" (MLB.com, 2/3).
TOUGH LOSS: In San Diego, Tim Sullivan writes some fans "already are celebrating the planned departure of ... Alderson as a step forward." Sullivan: "This reaction, it seems to me, is misguided. Alderson brought system and logic to an organization previously characterized by seat-of-the-pants decisions and hand-to-mouth financing. He built a scouting and development infrastructure that should benefit the organization for generations if properly cultivated." Alderson can "come off as condescending, particularly when he persists in jousting with radio reactionaries," but he is "usually right, he's always rational and he can't spend money ownership does not supply" (SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE, 2/4).
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