Three Cards' investors will buy Reds
11/11/2005
CINCINNATI -- Three Cincinnati men who are part of the Cardinals' ownership group will buy controlling interest in the Cincinnati Reds from Carl Lindner, keeping baseball's first professional franchise in local hands.The group is headed by Robert Castellini, chairman of a Cincinnati-based produce company, and relatives of a family that owned the team when it became the Big Red Machine in the 1970s -- Thomas Williams and William Williams Jr.The pending sale, first announced Nov. 3, must be approved by Major League Baseball. Most sales take between three months and a year to get approval from baseball owners, the timeframe usually depending upon the number of parties involved.All three are part of the Cardinals' ownership group led by Bill DeWitt Jr. and would have to sell their interests in the St. Louis team.
Several groups showed an interest after three limited partners put their shares _ representing 51.5 percent of the team _ up for sale in March. Lindner said then that he wanted to keep control.He changed his mind and agreed to sell his controlling shares as well. Castellini's group will buy between 70 percent and 80 percent of the team, valued at $270 million, said one of the parties involved in the sale.Castellini's group was the last to show an interest, getting involved only a month ago, said the source, speaking on condition of anonymity because baseball has barred comment on the deal until it is approved.Two other groups made similar bids, but Lindner felt most comfortable with Castellini's group."Carl knew them well," said another party involved in the deal, also speaking on condition of anonymity because of baseball's order. "That's got a lot to do with it. They're Cincinnati."Castellini's business was founded in 1896 _ 27 years after the Reds started playing _ and grew into one of the largest distributors of fresh fruits and vegetables in the country.When the Reds played at Riverfront Stadium starting in 1970, clubhouse attendants would get cabbage leaves from Castellini's nearby produce warehouse and soak them in ammonia so players could wear them under their caps and keep cool on scorching days. Castellini sold the warehouse and land for more than $30 million in the 1990s to make way for a football stadium for the Bengals.The 86-year-old Lindner knows Castellini from their business, civic and philanthropic dealings. Joe Bride, a corporate spokesman for Castellini, declined comment because of baseball's order."It's always been important to Mr. Lindner and the rest of the current owners to have a very strong local face on the new ownership," said Stephen Greenberg of Allen & Co., which was hired by the team's limited partners to arrange the sale.The sale adds to the Reds' legacy of local ownership.Broadcasting pioneer Powel Crosley Jr. bought the Reds in 1934 and put his name on the team's field. Local businessmen William and James Williams were part of the club's ownership group in the 1970s, when it won two World Series and became known as the Big Red Machine.Two of the Williams' descendants _ Thomas and William Jr. _ will be part of the new ownership group with Castellini, who would become the team's chief operating officer. The Williams family was part of the ownership group that sold control to local car dealer Marge Schott in 1984, setting up one of the club's most turbulent periods. The Reds won a World Series in 1990 but were tainted by her repeated offensive remarks.Under pressure from Major League Baseball, Schott sold her controlling shares in the team for $67 million to a group led by Lindner in 1999. Lindner would remain one of the team's limited partners, along with George Strike and Bill Reik Jr."Carl has meant so much to the Reds and the city of Cincinnati," Castellini said in a statement. "As such, we are thrilled that he has agreed to continue his association with the club as a significant partner in our ownership group."Fans welcomed Lindner's purchase of the team after Schott's budget cutting and inflammatory statements hurt the team's performance and reputation. Lindner's proudest moment came in February 2000, when he brought Ken Griffey Jr. to his hometown in a trade with Seattle.The Reds have foundered since they moved into Great American Ball Park in 2003. They've gone five years overall without a winning record, their longest slump in 50 years, and Lindner has been booed when he appeared on the field.Castellini also has been involved in civic causes, serving on the Cincinnati Zoo's board and helping with the futile effort to bring the 2012 Olympics to Cincinnati. Civic leaders were glad that control of the team was staying in local hands."We think it's great that we have a new ownership group stepping up to the plate," said Raymond Buse III, spokesman for the regional chamber of commerce.Buse, whose father and uncle were part of the ownership group with the Williams brothers, said baseball is "something that is part of the very fabric of what Cincinnati is all about. Obviously, we want to keep the Reds here, and having a local ownership group is the very best insurance for that."
Source: http://www.stltoday.com/
CINCINNATI -- Three Cincinnati men who are part of the Cardinals' ownership group will buy controlling interest in the Cincinnati Reds from Carl Lindner, keeping baseball's first professional franchise in local hands.The group is headed by Robert Castellini, chairman of a Cincinnati-based produce company, and relatives of a family that owned the team when it became the Big Red Machine in the 1970s -- Thomas Williams and William Williams Jr.The pending sale, first announced Nov. 3, must be approved by Major League Baseball. Most sales take between three months and a year to get approval from baseball owners, the timeframe usually depending upon the number of parties involved.All three are part of the Cardinals' ownership group led by Bill DeWitt Jr. and would have to sell their interests in the St. Louis team.
Several groups showed an interest after three limited partners put their shares _ representing 51.5 percent of the team _ up for sale in March. Lindner said then that he wanted to keep control.He changed his mind and agreed to sell his controlling shares as well. Castellini's group will buy between 70 percent and 80 percent of the team, valued at $270 million, said one of the parties involved in the sale.Castellini's group was the last to show an interest, getting involved only a month ago, said the source, speaking on condition of anonymity because baseball has barred comment on the deal until it is approved.Two other groups made similar bids, but Lindner felt most comfortable with Castellini's group."Carl knew them well," said another party involved in the deal, also speaking on condition of anonymity because of baseball's order. "That's got a lot to do with it. They're Cincinnati."Castellini's business was founded in 1896 _ 27 years after the Reds started playing _ and grew into one of the largest distributors of fresh fruits and vegetables in the country.When the Reds played at Riverfront Stadium starting in 1970, clubhouse attendants would get cabbage leaves from Castellini's nearby produce warehouse and soak them in ammonia so players could wear them under their caps and keep cool on scorching days. Castellini sold the warehouse and land for more than $30 million in the 1990s to make way for a football stadium for the Bengals.The 86-year-old Lindner knows Castellini from their business, civic and philanthropic dealings. Joe Bride, a corporate spokesman for Castellini, declined comment because of baseball's order."It's always been important to Mr. Lindner and the rest of the current owners to have a very strong local face on the new ownership," said Stephen Greenberg of Allen & Co., which was hired by the team's limited partners to arrange the sale.The sale adds to the Reds' legacy of local ownership.Broadcasting pioneer Powel Crosley Jr. bought the Reds in 1934 and put his name on the team's field. Local businessmen William and James Williams were part of the club's ownership group in the 1970s, when it won two World Series and became known as the Big Red Machine.Two of the Williams' descendants _ Thomas and William Jr. _ will be part of the new ownership group with Castellini, who would become the team's chief operating officer. The Williams family was part of the ownership group that sold control to local car dealer Marge Schott in 1984, setting up one of the club's most turbulent periods. The Reds won a World Series in 1990 but were tainted by her repeated offensive remarks.Under pressure from Major League Baseball, Schott sold her controlling shares in the team for $67 million to a group led by Lindner in 1999. Lindner would remain one of the team's limited partners, along with George Strike and Bill Reik Jr."Carl has meant so much to the Reds and the city of Cincinnati," Castellini said in a statement. "As such, we are thrilled that he has agreed to continue his association with the club as a significant partner in our ownership group."Fans welcomed Lindner's purchase of the team after Schott's budget cutting and inflammatory statements hurt the team's performance and reputation. Lindner's proudest moment came in February 2000, when he brought Ken Griffey Jr. to his hometown in a trade with Seattle.The Reds have foundered since they moved into Great American Ball Park in 2003. They've gone five years overall without a winning record, their longest slump in 50 years, and Lindner has been booed when he appeared on the field.Castellini also has been involved in civic causes, serving on the Cincinnati Zoo's board and helping with the futile effort to bring the 2012 Olympics to Cincinnati. Civic leaders were glad that control of the team was staying in local hands."We think it's great that we have a new ownership group stepping up to the plate," said Raymond Buse III, spokesman for the regional chamber of commerce.Buse, whose father and uncle were part of the ownership group with the Williams brothers, said baseball is "something that is part of the very fabric of what Cincinnati is all about. Obviously, we want to keep the Reds here, and having a local ownership group is the very best insurance for that."
Source: http://www.stltoday.com/
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