According to reports, the MLB ownership committee decided on Friday to approve the possible sale.
Major League Baseball’s ownership committee voted in favor of Baltimore investor David Rubenstein’s quest to buy the Orioles team on Friday, which was another positive step toward the acquisition, according to ESPN.
Before the deal is completed, Rubenstein, 74, needs to meet a few more requirements. He will next have to win over the eight members of the executive council.
Following that, the owners of every franchise will vote on his proposal. He will win if he receives 23 votes in favor, and at this point, there is no reason to believe otherwise.
News about Rubenstein’s proposal to pay over $1.7 billion for the Orioles, first broke in late January. If completed, this would represent the third-most lucrative franchise sale in Major League Baseball history. Only the Los Angeles Dodgers and the New York Mets have sold for more, both clearing the $2 billion threshold.
Since 1993, the Orioles have been owned by the Angelos family, whose patriarch Peter paid $173 million for the team. John, Peter’s son, is now the franchise’s face as a result of his health failing him in recent years.
Sadly, John’s rise has been accompanied by controversy. In 2023, a legal dispute between John, his brother Louis, and Peter’s spouse Georgia was resolved. Louis claimed in a significant portion of the complaint that John planned to move the Orioles to Tennessee.
Hall of Fame Orioles infielder Cal Ripken Jr., NBA Hall of Famer Grant Hill, and former mayor of New York City Mike Bloomberg are anticipated to be part of Rubenstein’s ownership group. As highlighted by CBS Sports upon the announcement, Rubenstein has a chance to position the Orioles as a perpetual World Series threat if he’s willing to make a greater financial commitment than the Angelos family was in its final years at the helm.