By Megan Sayles
AFRO Business Writer
msayles@afro.com
Private equity billionaire David Rubenstein has officially become the new owner of the Baltimore Orioles. Major League Baseball (MLB) owners unanimously approved the $1.7-billion sale of the team on March 27.
Rubenstein’s investor group includes Michael Arougheti, co-founder and CEO of Ares Management, and Mitchell Goldstein and Michael Smith, co-heads of the Ares Management Credit Group. Notable figures, including O’s Hall-of-Famer Cal Ripken Jr., former Baltimore Mayor Kurt Schmoke and Washington Spirit Owner Michele Kang, are also expected to join the ownership group.
“To own the Orioles is a great civic duty,” Rubenstein said in a statement released on March 27. “On behalf of my fellow owners, I want the Baltimore community and Orioles fans everywhere to know that we will work our hardest to deliver for you with professionalism, integrity, excellence and a fierce desire to win games.”
Rubenstein, a native of Baltimore, announced his intention to purchase the Orioles from the Angelos family in January. He is the co-founder and co-chairman of The Carlyle Group, one of the largest and most diversified global investment firms in the world.
Prior to the sale, the Angelos family owned the team for three decades. The late Peter Angelos, patriarch of the family of attorneys, purchased the Orioles in 1993, just one year after Camden Yards opened to baseball fans. In 2019, his son, John Angelos, took over as his father’s health declined.
“I thank John Angelos and his family for all they have done to bring us to this point. John led a dramatic overhaul of the team’s management, roster, recruitment strategy and farm system in recent years,” Rubenstein said in the statement. “Our job is to build on these accomplishments to advance a world-class professional sports agenda — with eyes on returning a World Series trophy to Baltimore.”
Under John Angelos’ leadership, the Orioles finalized a long-term lease agreement with the state of Maryland in December, pledging to keep the team in Charm City for the next 30 years.
Last season, the Orioles finished with the best record in the American League and second-best in baseball, winning 101 games. They also became the first team in MLB history to have the number one farm system for three consecutive years.
“Capping our organization turnaround with a championship in perhaps the toughest decision in sports, while fulfilling my pledge that the O’s would forever play ball in Charm City, dovetails perfectly with the privilege to now pass stewardship of Baltimore’s iconic team to a Baltimore native, passionate American and celebrate philanthropist in David Rubenstein,” John Angelos said in the statement.
“The Orioles are in great hands, and the club, as well as the city and state that it calls home, are well positioned for success into the future.”
Megan Sayles is a Report for America corps member.
