Bombers on the block
Report: Sale of Yanks for estimated $600 million likely
Posted: Sunday November 22, 1998 07:28 PM
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Selling a champion: Under the proposed deal, George Steinbrenner (left) would sell "a significant portion" of his share of the Yankees AP |
NEW YORK (AP) -- George Steinbrenner reportedly has reached an
agreement in principle to sell the New York Yankees to
Cablevision Systems Corp. for $550 million to $600 million. As
part of the sale, Steinbrenner would remain in charge of day-to-day
operations of the team. NBC Sports said the deal was agreed to
on Thursday and called for Steinbrenner to turn over full ownership of the
team to the cable network for $600 million. The Daily
News reported the sale would be completed after January 1 for tax
reasons and said it called for Cablevision to buy 70 percent of the team
for $550 million. Cablevision president James Dolan, whose
father is chairman of the company, said Sunday he would not comment on
"rumors or speculation." He said Cablevision "maintains an active interest
in the future of our relationship with Mr. Steinbrenner and the Yankees."
Howard Rubenstein, who handles public relations for
Steinbrenner, confirmed the Yankees' owner had been talking with
Cablevision chairman Charles Dolan but said there was nothing to announce.
Arthur Richman, a senior adviser to Steinbrenner, said of the
reported sale: "We've been hearing this for weeks. He's never told us."
If the deal goes through at either of the reported prices, it
would be a record for a baseball team and the second-highest price ever
paid for a sports franchise behind the pending $1 billion sale of the
English soccer team Manchester United to Rupert Murdoch.
Earlier this year, Murdoch paid $311 million for the Los Angeles Dodgers
and Alfred Lerner paid $530 million last month for the rights to an NFL
expansion team in Cleveland. Charles Dolan and his brother,
Larry, were finalists for the NFL team with a bid of $500 million. Earlier,
Charles Dolan became a major player in sports with the purchase of Madison
Square Garden and that arena's two pro teams, the NBA New York Knicks and
the NHL New York Rangers. Part of that purchase included
Madison Square Garden Network, which holds broadcast rights to the Yankees
in a 12-year, $486 million deal that expires in two years. By purchasing
the team, Cablevision assures itself of retaining those rights, a major
asset for the network. Cablevision, the country's sixth-largest
cable company, also owns Radio City Music Hall, a chain of New York City
home appliance stores and the Broadway show "The Scarlet Pimpernel."
Talks have gone on for some time between the Yankees and
Cablevision and Steinbrenner reported on them to his limited partners
during two days of meetings in Cleveland last week.
Steinbrenner, 68, led a group that paid $10 million to purchase the Yankees
from CBS in 1973. He has seen the value of the team zoom, particularly with
two World Series championships in the last three years and a record 125
victories last season. At one time, it was thought Steinbrenner
wanted to keep control of the Yankees within his family but his sons, Henry
and Hal, have expressed little interest in running the team. A
sale would shift the burden of the Yankee Stadium dispute from Steinbrenner
to Cablevision. Steinbrenner wants a new ballpark, complete with luxury
boxes and more parking, to replace the 75-year-old stadium in the Bronx.
The stadium lease expires in 2002 and Mayor Rudolph Giuliani
has supported Steinbrenner's demand for a new park on the West Side of
Manhattan. The owner also has talked with New Jersey representatives about
moving the franchise there if he does not get a new stadium.
Giuliani said it was "too early to say what impact a sale might have on
possible plans for a new stadium."
Copyright 2003 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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