MLB

Group led by Baltimore native David Rubenstein set to take control of the Orioles

By Chelsea Janes
January 31, 2024 at 2:09 p.m. EST

David Rubenstein, a Baltimore native and one of the founders of the private equity firm the Carlyle Group, is on the verge of acquiring control of the local sports franchise he has long pursued.

The prominent Washington philanthropist and a cohort of investors have an agreement in place to buy a 40 percent stake in the Orioles, according to three people familiar with the situation, all of whom spoke on the condition of anonymity to address a deal that still needs Major League Baseball’s approval. The deal values the team at $1.7 billion and the Rubenstein-led group would pay 40 percent now and hold the option to buy the rest at a later date. ... The existence of such a deal has not been confirmed by the Angelos family or the Orioles, who declined to comment.

Three people familiar with the agreement say Rubenstein’s investment group includes Michael Arougheti, founder of Ares Management, a private equity firm that went public in 2014, and Orioles legend Cal Ripken Jr. A representative for Ripken did not reply to a request for comment on his role.

If the deal comes to fruition, Rubenstein would become the Orioles’ “control person,” a term MLB uses to designate the lead decision-maker for each team. John Angelos, son of Orioles owner Peter Angelos, took over that role from his ailing father in 2020. Angelos has directed his family to sell the team when he dies, according to documents presented in a since-settled lawsuit, and multiple people familiar with the deal suggest that it includes an option for the Rubenstein-led group to purchase the remaining 60 percent of the team when that happens.

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By Chelsea Janes
Chelsea Janes is the national baseball writer in sports. She was The Washington Post's beat writer for the Washington Nationals from 2014 to 2018 and was a sports intern for The Post in 2013. She also previously covered the 2020 presidential campaign. Twitter https://twitter.com/chelsea_janes