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Saturday, January 30, 2010

Lemieux, Penguins co-owner offer to buy Pirates

Mario Lemieux and Ron Burkle, co-owners of the Penguins, recently made an unsolicited offer to buy the Pirates in a face-to-face meeting with that team’s owner, Bob Nutting, but the offer did not receive a response.

Sources on the Penguins’ side last night described the offer made by Mr. Lemieux and Mr. Burkle as “very serious,” without divulging a dollar figure, and said they remain interested in following up.

The Pirates characterized the matter far differently.

Mr. Nutting, the only person in the meeting to comment on it, was adamant that no serious discussion about a sale had taken place. And he firmly reiterated that the Pirates are not for sale.

“Honestly, I’m not sure there’s a situation to describe,” Mr. Nutting said last night when asked about the meeting. “I like Ron. He’s an extremely competent businessman and deal-maker, and we’ve talked about a wide range of topics. But I think the simplest way to say this is that there never has been a substantive or formal offer for the team. The team is not for sale.”

Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/10030/1032299-63.stm#ixzz0e7Mt2klH

Yellow and Black Unite! NUT!

Gamingboy Posted: January 30, 2010 at 05:31 PM | 13 comment(s) | Login to Bookmark
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1. Mike Emeigh

Posted: January 30, 2010 at 05:57 PM (#3450643)

Won't happen unless (a) by some miracle both the P-G and the Trib start campaigning for it or (b) the Pirates go through another season where they show absolutely no signs of on-field progress. Should happen, but won't.

-- MWE

2. PASTE is not impressed by Albert Pujols (Zeth) Posted: January 30, 2010 at 06:23 PM (#3450666)

I can't see how (b) there would make any difference, Mike. Nutting has repeatedly maintained that he has no interest in selling the Pirates, and I have no reason to doubt him. The Pirates are extremely profitable. The financial landscape of MLB would have to change such that they stop being profitable before he'd sell.

3. Gamingboy Posted: January 30, 2010 at 06:39 PM (#3450674)

Given the fact that Pittsburgh is one of the leading Robotics areas in the country , perhaps the best hope Pirates fans for getting rid of Nutting is the obvious: Robot Uprising.

4. Heinie Mantush (Krusty) Posted: January 30, 2010 at 07:40 PM (#3450716)

In the event of a robot uprising, it's always good to have insurance.

5. Not The Real Fausto Carmona (Dan Lee) Posted: January 30, 2010 at 07:55 PM (#3450722)

I'm sure MLB is just wild about a potential ownership group that had cashflow issues in the NHL.

I know it's not entirely their fault. I'm just sayin'.

6. Mike Emeigh

Posted: January 30, 2010 at 09:16 PM (#3450759)

I can't see how (b) there would make any difference, Mike.

This is the third full year of this management regime, and I'm of the opinion that the fan base is very restless at the apparent lack of movement forward. They've cut Nutting and Huntington some slack to this point, but if the organization isn't demonstrably better on the field by the end of 2010, the natives might move beyond the point of *just* being restless, to the point of walking away from the whole mess as long as Nutting remains in charge.

-- MWE

7. RoyalsRetro (AG#1F) Posted: January 30, 2010 at 10:02 PM (#3450781)

I didn't RTFA, but how does Super Mario have enough money to be co-owner of a MLB team? Is Burkle the one with the money and Mario is just the minority owner/face of the group a la George W. Bush with the Rangers?

8. Justin T contains indigenous nudity Posted: January 30, 2010 at 10:08 PM (#3450786)

He charges Crosby some steep rent.

9. bobm Posted: January 31, 2010 at 03:03 AM (#3450943)

[7] from wikipedia:

Ronald Wayne Burkle (born November 12, 1952) is an American business magnate. A major political fundraiser, he is listed on the Forbes 400, with an estimated net worth of $3.5 billion in 2008

10. RollingWave Posted: January 31, 2010 at 06:01 AM (#3451015)

OMG, Mario Lemieux is going to be the manager / player of the Pirates??!?!?!

11. Lassus: Posted: January 31, 2010 at 10:21 AM (#3451057)

I think it would be great if ownership was voted in and out on 10-year terms.

12. Downtown Bookie

Posted: January 31, 2010 at 12:27 PM (#3451062)

Nutting has repeatedly maintained that he has no interest in selling the Pirates, and I have no reason to doubt him. The Pirates are extremely profitable. The financial landscape of MLB would have to change such that they stop being profitable before he'd sell.

I thought this was worth repeating. In fact, I think it's worth repeating every time it's suggested that the competitive balance between MLB's large and small market teams needs to be fixed. As long as it's possible for a team like the Pirates to go nearly twenty consecutive years without a winning season, while playing in one of the league's smallest markets, yet still be "extremely profitable", I don't expect any significant changes in the way MLB divvies up its profits among its owners.

DB

13. McCoy Posted: January 31, 2010 at 01:09 PM (#3451064)

Wouldn't something like that create change? How long are teams in large markets with large payrolls going to forgo profit so that small market teams that do nothing can make even bigger profits? Aren't we already seeing a change now, what with the Marlins and MLB releasing a statement saying they are going to spend more?

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Lemieux, Penguins co-owner offer to buy Pirates

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