Results tagged ‘ Tom Ricketts ’
7/7 Cubs sale, part II
Apparently Tom Ricketts isn’t the only one in the running to buy the Cubs. The Tribune Co. is apparently “working on a deal” to sell the team, Wrigley Field and other assets to a group led by New York investor and former Chicagoan Marc Utay.
“They are not as far along as the Ricketts family but making quick progress,” a source told the Chicago Tribune on Tuesday.
It isn’t clear how Tribune Co. intends to coordinate what appears to be a new auction between the Ricketts group and Utay’s group. What is known is that the Ricketts family has been negotiating to buy the Cubs since January when Tribune Co. selected the family’s bid as its first choice after an auction that included Utay.
On Monday, the Ricketts family appeared to gain the upper hand, after it was learned that the family and Tribune Co. had sent documents over the weekend outlining a proposed deal to Major League Baseball. A second person familiar with the negotiations said Monday that the Ricketts family believed they had a “handshake deal” with Tribune Co.
Reuters news service reported Tuesday that Tribune Co. has agreed to financial terms with Utay’s group but a company spokesman said no agreements are in place.
“We have not reached an agreement on terms with any party,” Tribune spokesman Gary Weitman said.
An MLB source told the Chicago Tribune on Tuesday that the league has not received anything from Utay or Tribune Co. regarding a potential deal between the two parties.
MLB officials have begun the vetting process regarding the Ricketts’ family. Tom Ricketts had bid $900 million to purchase the Cubs, Wrigley and Tribune Co.’s 25 percent stake in Comcast SportsNet Chicago, a regional cable sports network.
– Carrie Muskat
7/6 Cubs sale
The Cubs may have a new owner soon. According to the Chicago Tribune website, Tribune Co. apparently has reached a deal to sell the Cubs and Wrigley Field to the Ricketts family, a source familiar with matter said Monday.
The two sides finalized a sale agreement over the weekend and have forwarded the contract to Major League Baseball, the source told the newspaper.
The deal must be approved by other baseball owners. With Tribune Co. operating under Chapter 11 bankruptcy, the sale also will need court approval.
The source said the sales price is “close” to the $900 million bid the Ricketts family offered earlier this year that won an auction for the baseball team, stadium and a 25 percent stake in Comcast SportsNet Chicago, a regional cable television sports network.
– Carrie Muskat
7/4 Cubs sale
An agreement between Tribune Co. and the Ricketts family regarding the sale of the Cubs could be completed in the next two weeks, according to a report Friday from David Kaplan, host of “Chicago Tribune Live” on Comcast SportsNet. Kaplan quotes a “good baseball source” as saying the deal is near completion. Major League Baseball owners must still approve the sale, and could do so at their August meeting.
Sports Business Journal reported in mid-May that Ricketts had agreements with JP Morgan Chase, Citigroup, and Bank of America to commit to the financing needed to close his family’s $900 million purchase of the team. That commitment would allow Ricketts to submit his bid to the court that is overseeing the bankruptcy filing of the team’s current owner, the Tribune Co. The court would need 30 to 45 days to process the offer, according to the SBJ, and the deal could be closed by July.
The Cubs have been on the market since April 2007.
– Carrie Muskat
5/30 Cubs sale update
According to Crain’s Chicago Business, Tom Ricketts, who is leading his family’s bid to buy the Cubs from the Tribune Co., is closer to sealing the deal than recent reports suggest.
There was believed to be some disagreement over the terms of the team’s broadcast contract with Tribune’s WGN network that left the two sides as much as $50 million apart on the nearly $900-million deal.
Sources now tell Crain’s that both sides have made concessions on some of the key sticking points. The Ricketts family has had exclusive talks with the Tribune re: the sale since January.
The financing appears to be in place. J. P. Morgan Chase & Co., Citigroup Corp. and Bank of America Corp. have agreed in principle to loan the Ricketts family about $350 million, and Crain’s has learned that draft commitment letters are expected to be signed by next week. The balance of the funding will come from a $100-million private placement of notes and $403 million in cash the family generated when it sold stock of TD Ameritrade in February.
– Carrie Muskat
5/29 Cubs sale update
Tribune Co. chairman Sam Zell says the sale of the Cubs to the Ricketts family is not a sure thing. In an interview with Bloomberg Television, Zell said: “We’ve made it very public that the Cubs don’t fit into the long-term picture of the Tribune. So if the Ricketts deal doesn’t get done, I’m sure there will be other ones.”
Zell told Bloomberg the credit market slump has contributed to the delay. “These are very difficult times,” he said. “These are difficult times to arrange financing.”
One of the issues still to be resolved is the value of the TV and radio contracts to broadcast Cubs games. The Ricketts family made a bid of about $900 million in January, and has raised $400 million by selling some of its shares in TD Ameritrade Holding Corp.
– Carrie Muskat
Big money Cubs fans
Tom Ricketts, who is trying to buy the Cubs, has reportedly talked to actor and longtime Cubs fan Bill Murray about investing in the team. Ricketts apparently also has contacted actors Jim Belushi and John Cusack about investing as well, according to a story in the Chicago Tribune on Tuesday.
Three banks have agreed to lend the Ricketts family $450 million to help finance its purchase of the Cubs, Wrigley Field and 25 percent share in Comcast SportsNet Chicago. The family also has raised money by selling some of its shares in TD Ameritrade. One of the holdups in finalizing the deal, however, is determining the value of the existing television and radio contracts to broadcast Cubs games, according to the Tribune’s story source. Industry observers have questioned whether the Cubs have received market value for the broadcast rights because the team and the TV and radio stations are owned by the same company.
– Carrie Muskat
Thursday extra bases
Former Cubs pitcher Rick Sutcliffe will be back in uniform with the team on Friday. Sutcliffe will share his expertise and a few jokes with the coaches and players until he has to report to the broadcast booth for the World Baseball Classic. He was teasing one of the veteran groundskeepers on Thursday about how they would rake the warning track but not the infield when he was pitching.
- Just so there’s no confusion, Lou Piniella says he’s sticking with Alfonso Soriano as his leadoff man. That’s for the regular season. You may see Soriano hitting elsewhere in the order in Cactus League games so others can try out for the No. 1 spot.
- Single game tickets go on sale Friday.
- The Cubs will workout at Fitch Park until Monday, and then move down the street to HoHoKam Park.
- Piniella on Ken Griffey Jr. rejoining the Seattle Mariners: ”That’s wonderful. He’s going back to Seattle and he’s going to the Hall of Fame in a Seattle uniform. He started his career there and had 10 great years there. It’s good for the city and good for Junior to go back to his roots. I’m happy for both of them.”
- Piniella hasn’t talked to Tom Ricketts, who has exclusive negotiating rights to buy the Cubs. Said Piniella: “We look forward to seeing him and meeting him and talking baseball with him — and maybe even [talking about] some stocks.”
– Carrie Muskat
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