Orioles co-heir accused by brother of scheming to move team to Nashville, but what about that new $600m Camden Yards subsidy?

Baltimore Orioles ownership co-heir Lou Angelos sued his brother John Angelos last week, charging that John is trying to seize sole control of the team that their father Peter left to them. (The 92-year-old Peter Angelos is still alive, but largely incapacitated these days.) And among a bunch of accusations, including firing former Orioles outfielder from a front-office role because he “presented a threat,” Lou included this:

“John intends to maintain absolute control over the Orioles — to manage, to sell, or, if he chooses, to move to Tennessee (where he has a home and where his wife’s career is headquartered) — without having to answer to anyone,” according to the lawsuit.

That “if he chooses” is going a lot of work there, needless to say. O’s-to-Nashville rumors have been rumbling for three years now, ever since a sportswriter for an obscure local news site described it as a “rumor,” no sources given. It didn’t make a ton of sense then — Nashville remains slightly smaller than Baltimore, though it’s slowly gaining, though it does have a higher median household income, and it doesn’t have a big-league stadium while Baltimore has one of the most popular ones in the league. And it makes even less sense now that the state of Maryland has approved $600 million in publicly funded renovations to Camden Yards in exchange for the Orioles extending their lease.

They … they did extend the Orioles’ lease, right? In the run-up to the renovation subsidy deal, it was reported that the team (and the Ravens, who got their own $600 million) would be required to extend their lease for as long as it took the renovation bonds to be paid off, which as I noted at the time for a 15-year extension would shatter the record for biggest per-year taxpayer cost for a sports team lease extension. But was an extension actually signed? Let’s see what the reporting said at the time:

The [Maryland Stadium Authority] believes the bill helps ensure that both the Orioles and the Ravens will stay at Camden Yards beyond their current lease terms.

MSA officials thought the teams would not renew their leases without improvements to the stadiums. It is those improvements which could help negotiate new long-term lease agreements with both teams.

So the MSA isn’t actually requiring the Angeloses to extend their lease in exchange for the $600 million in renovation money? Or it is, but a lease hasn’t yet been agreed on, but it will be if the Angeloses want their taxpayer boodle? Anyone? Baltimore Sun?

The Orioles currently are barred from leaving Baltimore by a clause in the team’s lease on Oriole Park at Camden Yards. However, the lease with the Maryland Stadium Authority for the state-owned ballpark expires at the end of next year and long-running negotiations have yet to yield an extension.

Okay, so the lease is still being negotiated. The subsidy bill itself requires that before the money is allocated, the MSA must first negotiate “a lease of a renewal or extension of a lease that will not terminate prior to the maturity date or payoff of any bonds issued for the stadium” — but it doesn’t say anything about the lease not including an opt-out clause, or a state-of-the-art clause allowing the Angeloses to break it if they claim Camden Yards isn’t not world-class anymore. One certainly hopes that the MSA wouldn’t be dumb enough to hand over $600 million in renovation money with no strings attached, but then, this is the agency whose chair described it as a “great thing” when he cut a deal for the state to get 8% of ticket sales for a Paul McCartney concert instead of 45%, so maybe we shouldn’t hope too hard.

For what it’s worth, John Angelos issued a statement this morning saying that the Orioles “will continue to play right here in downtown Baltimore for generations to come,” though he tied that to the renovation subsidy, so there’s at least a chance that he could yet saber-rattle about moving the team if the state doesn’t agree to a lease that’s to his liking. As could his brother Lou, honestly, if he gains control of the team in his lawsuit. If there’s one thing to learn from the Angelos family saga, it’s that you can’t count on good guys to remain good guys for long.

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8 comments on “Orioles co-heir accused by brother of scheming to move team to Nashville, but what about that new $600m Camden Yards subsidy?

  1. I’d argue in favour of the McCartney concert being considered a baseball event, because it was 3 hours long, one guy would move every once in awhile, and it was 90% the same concert I saw 20 years ago.

      1. Haha, his voice started to give out near the end

        To be fair it was one of the top 5 concerts I’ve ever seen 5 years ago, and to have an 80 year old re-perform it pretty much as well was an accomplishment

  2. Presumptive heirs-to-be notwithstanding, this is an interesting development.

    The Angelos’ management of this franchise has been chaotic and very disappointing (at least to Orioles fans… to everyone else it’s just been cheap/free entertainment) for quite some time.

    Normally you’d expect a lawsuit between two (or more) people who do not yet own the asset in question to be a difficult proposition… but assuming powers of attorney (etc) exist in some form, that may not be the case here (the linked article makes several representations in this area but it is not completely clear what is and what is not known about the instructions the elder Angelos left in the event of his death or diminished capacity, or whether they are being observed).

    Perhaps the first order of business would be to have an injunction against relocation or sale of the team issued pending the outcome of this action? As noted, the team’s lease does expire next year, but it wouldn’t be the first time a court has imposed a mandatory extension on parties while a question of ownership is involved.

    Interesting times. I wonder if MLB or even the city might be seeking to join the fray (both are parties with legitimate interest…)

    If nothing else we now have a third professional sports entry in the ultimate failson sweepstakes…

  3. What is it with Maryland and psycho owners? Is it the proximity to D.C.?

    1. Are you referring to Robert Irsay? The Baltimore Colts moved to Indianapolis because the state of Maryland was going to seize the NFL club under the guise of Eminent Domain.

    2. Snyder might be the more obvious example… is he the one you were referring to Jorge?

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