American businessman John Angelos has agreed to the sale of the Baltimore Orioles to a group led by David Rubenstein, Co-Founder and Co-Chairman of private equity firm The Carlyle Group, as part of a transaction valuing the baseball team at $1.7bn.
Rubinstein, who is from Baltimore, will succeed as the team’s majority owner and has assembled an investment team that includes Michael Arougheti, Co-Founder of Ares Management. The businessman had previously shown interest in buying the Washington Nationals.
The sale is still pending approval by Major League Baseball and must receive a vote of at least 75% by its 30 teams. The sales approval process typically lasts several months.
The Angelos family has been in control of the Orioles since 1993, when Peter Angelos purchased the team for $173m.
