Baltimore Orioles' new owner David Rubenstein approved by MLB, taking over from Angelos family

The Baltimore Orioles are getting a new owner just in time for one of the most anticipated seasons in recent franchise history.

Major League Baseball on Wednesday unanimously approved the sale of the Orioles from the Angelos family to Baltimore native David Rubenstein, for a reported $1.725 billion. MLB's 29 other ownership groups approved the sale, which was agreed to Jan. 31.

The approval comes just days after Peter Angelos, who has owned the club since 1993, died at 94 after a long illness. Angelos turned over control of the club to son John in 2018. After a yearlong quest to both extend the Orioles' lease at Camden Yards and acquire rights to develop the land around Oriole Park, Angelos could not accomplish the latter and opted to sell the team to Rubenstein.

Rubenstein, 74, co-founded the Carlyle Group private equity firm and was the 74-year-old co-founder of private equity firm Carlyle Group. He recently announced he was stepping down as chairman of the Kennedy Center. His net worth is estimated at nearly $4 billion.

The sale ends a tumultuous reign for the Angelos family, which bought the club for $193 million in 1993, just one year after the trailblazing Camden Yards opened to fans. Peter Angelos fought to keep an additional franchise out of nearby Washington, then waged court battles to dispute the amount of revenue the relocated Nationals received as part of their agreement to move to Washington.

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On the field, Angelos's Orioles had mixed success, winning AL East titles in 1997 and 2014 and struggling as the rival Yankees and Red Sox hatched dynasties in the late 1990s and 2000s. By 2018, the club lost 115 games, a rebuild was ordered and an ailing Angelos ceded control of the team to his son.

“On behalf of Major League Baseball, I thank the Angelos family for their many years of service to the game and the communities of Baltimore," says MLB commissioner Rob Manfred in a statement. "Peter Angelos loved baseball, loved Baltimore and was an important part of MLB for more than three decades.“I congratulate David Rubenstein on receiving approval from the Major League Clubs as the new control person of the Orioles. As a Baltimore native and a lifelong fan of the team, David is uniquely suited to lead the Orioles moving forward. We welcome David and his partners as the new stewards of the franchise.”

In the six years since Peter Angelos ceded control to his son, new GM Mike Elias has built an imposing baseball machine that won 101 games a season ago yet still boasts the top farm system in baseball. The club is expected to repeat its playoff appearance from a year ago, at the least.

That's the franchise Rubenstein will inherit, one that was star-crossed for decades yet staggered out of a tailspin and into what seems like sustainable success.

His ownership group will include a significant stakes held by Ares Management CEO Michael Arougheti and Ares co-heads Mitchell Goldstein and Michael Smith.

Hall of Fame shortstop Cal Ripken Jr., basketball legend Grant Hill and Washington Spirit owner Michele Kang are among those holding small stakes in the club.

"To own the Orioles is a great civic duty," says Rubenstein in a statement released by the team. "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.”

"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. 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.”

Like any new owner, job No. 1 for Rubenstein will be to not mess it up.