The Baltimore Orioles announced that longtime owner Peter Angelos died Saturday at the age of 94.
Angelos and other investors bought the franchise in 1993 for $173 million, and, due to his health in recent years, his sons, John and Louis, took over primary operations in 2019.
“Mr. Angelos had been ill for several years, and the family thanks the doctors, nurses and caregivers who brought comfort to him in his final years,” the team said in a statement. “It was Mr. Angelos’ wish to have a private burial, and the family asks for understanding as they honor that request. Donations may be sent to charity in lieu of flowers.”
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Baltimore Orioles owner Peter Angelos (Getty Images)
Shortly after buying the team, Angelos made the O’s a postseason contender, signing some big free agents, including Rafael Palmeiro, before the 1994 season. The O’s reached the ALCS in 1996 and 1997 but missed the postseason the next 14 seasons.
The franchise is now back as one of the league’s best. The Orioles are coming off a 101-win season in which they won the AL East as one of the league’s most surprising teams.
Baltimore Orioles’ owner Peter Angelos talks at a press conference Aug. 16, 2002, at baseball headquarters in New York. (Stan Honda/AFP via Getty Images)
Their young core of Adley Rutschman, Gunnar Henderson, Ryan Mountcastle and Jackson Holliday is expected to gel nicely with veterans like Corbin Burnes, Craig Kimbrel, Cedric Mullins and Anthony Santander.
In January, the Angelos family agreed to sell the club to private equity billionaires David Rubenstein and Mike Arougheti. The sale price is an estimated $1.725 billion, and Orioles legend Cal Ripken Jr. is also an investor.
The sale came after John and Louis were in a legal drama over the future of the team. Louis claimed John and their mother, Georgia, were pushing Louis out of the family’s fortune.
Owner Peter Angelos talks with Cal Ripken Jr. (8) of the Baltimore Orioles Oct. 6, 2001, at Oriole Park at Camden Yards in Baltimore. (Focus on Sport/Getty Images)
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Rubenstein and Arougheti are expected to initially buy 40% of the franchise before purchasing the remaining 60% at a later date. The estimated timetable for the deal to close remains unclear.
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