my kind of guy........
http://www.suntimes.com/sports/mariotti/787100,mariotti021108.article
Just so you know, the owner of the Cubs said ``(bleep) you'' to a female company employee last week. Just so you know, he asked workers at a staff meeting to inform him if they find good porn sites on the Internet. And, just so you know, he defended running strip-joint ads in the respectable Los Angeles Times by saying some of his best friends go to such clubs, reportedly adding, ``Everyone likes p---y. It's un-American not to like p---y.''
http://www.suntimes.com/sports/mariotti/787100,mariotti021108.article
Just so you know, the owner of the Cubs said ``(bleep) you'' to a female company employee last week. Just so you know, he asked workers at a staff meeting to inform him if they find good porn sites on the Internet. And, just so you know, he defended running strip-joint ads in the respectable Los Angeles Times by saying some of his best friends go to such clubs, reportedly adding, ``Everyone likes p---y. It's un-American not to like p---y.''
buster: you're kind of guy? Granted, I'm in my early twenties but some circles I sit in aren't on my degenerate level. Sam Zell is a cheap, foul bastard that would screw his own family for money, and he has.
He used to ride a moded around downtown thirty years ago and packed his own lunch. People wonder why there's a stereotype for cheap Jews
He used to ride a moded around downtown thirty years ago and packed his own lunch. People wonder why there's a stereotype for cheap Jews
June 9, 2008
<!-- Article By Line --> BY NEIL HAYES nhayes@suntimes.com
<!-- Article's First Paragraph --> <!-- BlogBurst ContentStart --> Mark Cuban gets his first peek under the Cubs' hood today.
The Dallas Mavericks owner and Internet billionaire is eagerly awaiting the ''book'' that will tell him precisely what Cubs owner Sam Zell is selling. The long-awaited financial details are expected to be sent to ownership groups pre-approved by Major League Baseball as early as today.
<!-- BlogBurst ContentEnd --> <!-- start sidebar --> <!-- begin poll --> <!-- end poll -->
<!-- Fact box starts here -->
<!-- BlogBurst ContentStart --> That's when the process really will begin. And that's when Cuban and Zell could learn that what they want out of a deal that will shape the future of the Cubs' venerable, ivy-covered franchise is a mere trifle compared to what baseball wants.
Cuban built a solid case for being an acceptable potential owner based on his forward-thinking and fan-friendly -- albeit somewhat controversial -- track record in the NBA. He likes to sit in the bleachers and drink beer. He responds to fans' e-mails. He's a bit of a radical, which can put off more conservative-thinking fellow owners.
In other words, think of Cuban as a modern-day everyman in the mold of ex-White Sox owner Bill Veeck, but more willing and able to outspend the competition.
He knows that his bid is a long shot, which is why he stumped Friday on WMVP-AM (1000). He said he must prove to baseball owners that he can ''add value beyond just my checkbook to not just the Cubs, to not just the city of Chicago, but also to Major League Baseball.'' He talked about a pro sports franchise being a public trust, about mending fences in the Wrigleyville community and ensuring that the surrounding neighborhood continues to benefit as a result of hosting the Cubs.
Cuban said all the right things, as if launching a campaign, which is precisely what he's doing -- trying to win votes among major-league owners whose fingerprints will be all over the Cubs' bill of sale, whether Zell chooses to believe it or not.
Zell, on the other hand, talked tough during an interview on CNBC in February. The Cubs' temporary owner predicted that baseball wouldn't play a prominent role in the sale of the Cubs. The Cubs and Wrigley Field were his assets, and potential bidders must deal with him and only him, he said.
Expect Bud Selig and his owners to call this billy goat's bluff.
Cuban and Zell are rich guys who are used to getting their own way. What Cuban seems to understand -- and what Zell does not seem to yet fully comprehend -- is that baseball owners are rich guys used to getting their own way, too, and they have something on their side that makes them a bigger wild card in this process than mavericks like Cuban and Zell.
It's called an antitrust exemption, and it means baseball's owners will have the ultimate say over who joins their exclusive club.
Before potential ownership groups can bid on the team, they must first be approved, which Zell concedes. What he has thus far failed to mention, at least publicly, is that once a formal offer is presented and accepted, three-fourths of the owners must vote to approve the sale.
Baseball suspended George Steinbrenner, baseball's most powerful owner, and Marge Schott. They turned Eddie DeBartolo away, forcing him to buy the San Francisco 49ers instead. They micromanaged the Red Sox sale, steering it to John Henry's group even though his wasn't the highest bid and therefore less money would go to charitable causes.
In the end, it may not matter what Zell wants or whether Cuban has kicked the tires. The Lords of Baseball will decide the future owner of the Cubs.
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<!-- Article By Line --> BY NEIL HAYES nhayes@suntimes.com
<!-- Article's First Paragraph --> <!-- BlogBurst ContentStart --> Mark Cuban gets his first peek under the Cubs' hood today.
The Dallas Mavericks owner and Internet billionaire is eagerly awaiting the ''book'' that will tell him precisely what Cubs owner Sam Zell is selling. The long-awaited financial details are expected to be sent to ownership groups pre-approved by Major League Baseball as early as today.
<!-- BlogBurst ContentEnd --> <!-- start sidebar --> <!-- begin poll --> <!-- end poll -->
<!-- Fact box starts here -->
<!-- BlogBurst ContentStart --> That's when the process really will begin. And that's when Cuban and Zell could learn that what they want out of a deal that will shape the future of the Cubs' venerable, ivy-covered franchise is a mere trifle compared to what baseball wants.
Cuban built a solid case for being an acceptable potential owner based on his forward-thinking and fan-friendly -- albeit somewhat controversial -- track record in the NBA. He likes to sit in the bleachers and drink beer. He responds to fans' e-mails. He's a bit of a radical, which can put off more conservative-thinking fellow owners.
In other words, think of Cuban as a modern-day everyman in the mold of ex-White Sox owner Bill Veeck, but more willing and able to outspend the competition.
He knows that his bid is a long shot, which is why he stumped Friday on WMVP-AM (1000). He said he must prove to baseball owners that he can ''add value beyond just my checkbook to not just the Cubs, to not just the city of Chicago, but also to Major League Baseball.'' He talked about a pro sports franchise being a public trust, about mending fences in the Wrigleyville community and ensuring that the surrounding neighborhood continues to benefit as a result of hosting the Cubs.
Cuban said all the right things, as if launching a campaign, which is precisely what he's doing -- trying to win votes among major-league owners whose fingerprints will be all over the Cubs' bill of sale, whether Zell chooses to believe it or not.
Zell, on the other hand, talked tough during an interview on CNBC in February. The Cubs' temporary owner predicted that baseball wouldn't play a prominent role in the sale of the Cubs. The Cubs and Wrigley Field were his assets, and potential bidders must deal with him and only him, he said.
Expect Bud Selig and his owners to call this billy goat's bluff.
Cuban and Zell are rich guys who are used to getting their own way. What Cuban seems to understand -- and what Zell does not seem to yet fully comprehend -- is that baseball owners are rich guys used to getting their own way, too, and they have something on their side that makes them a bigger wild card in this process than mavericks like Cuban and Zell.
It's called an antitrust exemption, and it means baseball's owners will have the ultimate say over who joins their exclusive club.
Before potential ownership groups can bid on the team, they must first be approved, which Zell concedes. What he has thus far failed to mention, at least publicly, is that once a formal offer is presented and accepted, three-fourths of the owners must vote to approve the sale.
Baseball suspended George Steinbrenner, baseball's most powerful owner, and Marge Schott. They turned Eddie DeBartolo away, forcing him to buy the San Francisco 49ers instead. They micromanaged the Red Sox sale, steering it to John Henry's group even though his wasn't the highest bid and therefore less money would go to charitable causes.
In the end, it may not matter what Zell wants or whether Cuban has kicked the tires. The Lords of Baseball will decide the future owner of the Cubs.
<!-- BlogBurst ContentEnd --><!-- Start Bottom Story --> <!--text--> <script type="text/javascript"> var BLOGBURST_WIDGET_ID = "B7hKffsuorcGDKIZK9SoYtK"; var BLOGBURST_TRACKING_CODE = ""; </script> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://api.blogburst.com/v1.0/WidgetDeliveryProxy.js"></script><script src="http://api.blogburst.com/v1.0/WidgetDeliveryProxyStub.js"></script><!-- NOTE: do not remove or rename div id="B7hKffsuorcGDKIZK9SoYtK"; it is the identifier for this widget and the parent selector for widget CSS styles -->
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NEW YORK (AP)—Tribune Co. is inviting at least three potential buyers who each submitted bids for the Chicago Cubs and Wrigley Field near or above $1 billion to participate in a second round of proposals, according to a person involved in the process.
Several bidders offering between $700 million and $900 million for all the properties have been excluded from the second round, according to the person, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of nondisclosure agreements governing all talk about the bids.
A Tribune spokeswoman said the baseball team would not have any comment on the status of the sale, which also includes the team’s minority stake in a Chicago regional sports TV network.
Included in the second round are Internet billionaire and Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban; the Ricketts family, which founded the brokerage that is now TD Ameritrade Holding Corp.; and a group led by Sports Acquisition Holding Corp. that includes former baseball home run king Henry Aaron and former Republican Congressman Jack Kemp. The last group is believed to be teaming with another bidder who submitted an offer in the initial round.
All three of the reported potential buyers refused Thursday to comment publicly. However, the person involved in the bidding provided to The Associated Press an outline of the conditions for the second round.
John Canning, the chairman of private equity firm Madison Dearborn Partners LLC, which had been treated as the front-runner, did not make the initial cut, according to the person, who said Tribune is not letting any bidder eliminated after the first round submit a new higher proposal in the second round.
Canning is a minority owner of the Milwaukee Brewers and close friends with Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig. Any successful sale must be approved by three-quarters of the owners of other major league teams.
Canning did not return calls seeking comment.
The bidders still in the running will get more detailed financial information on the Cubs, Wrigley and the sports network before they are required to submit a new proposal.
A person familiar with the Ricketts family bid confirmed that it is one of those invited back.
The Cubs—lovable losers who haven’t won a World Series in 100 years—are expected to fetch more than the record $660 million paid for the Boston Red Sox, their ballpark and 80 percent of their TV network in 2002 by a group headed by Florida commodities trader John Henry.
Tribune paid $20.5 million for the team in 1981. It is now seeking to sell the team and its stadium to help pay off the $8.2 billion cost of going private last year.
The value of Wrigley Field apparently has been harder to quantify, since it may require hundreds of millions of dollars in renovations.
The state-run Illinois Sports Facilities Authority offered about $400 million to buy Wrigley using taxable bonds that would be repaid with lease revenue. Those talks broke down in May over how the ISFA would finance renovations and improvements at Wrigley, the second-oldest ballpark in the country behind Boston’s Fenway Park.
Former Gov. Jim Thompson, who is chairman of ISFA, said his agency estimated the cost of improving the stadium structure and the player and fan amenities between $400 million and $600 million.
Tribune has said it is willing to sell the properties individually.
Several bidders offering between $700 million and $900 million for all the properties have been excluded from the second round, according to the person, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of nondisclosure agreements governing all talk about the bids.
A Tribune spokeswoman said the baseball team would not have any comment on the status of the sale, which also includes the team’s minority stake in a Chicago regional sports TV network.
Included in the second round are Internet billionaire and Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban; the Ricketts family, which founded the brokerage that is now TD Ameritrade Holding Corp.; and a group led by Sports Acquisition Holding Corp. that includes former baseball home run king Henry Aaron and former Republican Congressman Jack Kemp. The last group is believed to be teaming with another bidder who submitted an offer in the initial round.
All three of the reported potential buyers refused Thursday to comment publicly. However, the person involved in the bidding provided to The Associated Press an outline of the conditions for the second round.
John Canning, the chairman of private equity firm Madison Dearborn Partners LLC, which had been treated as the front-runner, did not make the initial cut, according to the person, who said Tribune is not letting any bidder eliminated after the first round submit a new higher proposal in the second round.
Canning is a minority owner of the Milwaukee Brewers and close friends with Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig. Any successful sale must be approved by three-quarters of the owners of other major league teams.
Canning did not return calls seeking comment.
The bidders still in the running will get more detailed financial information on the Cubs, Wrigley and the sports network before they are required to submit a new proposal.
A person familiar with the Ricketts family bid confirmed that it is one of those invited back.
The Cubs—lovable losers who haven’t won a World Series in 100 years—are expected to fetch more than the record $660 million paid for the Boston Red Sox, their ballpark and 80 percent of their TV network in 2002 by a group headed by Florida commodities trader John Henry.
Tribune paid $20.5 million for the team in 1981. It is now seeking to sell the team and its stadium to help pay off the $8.2 billion cost of going private last year.
The value of Wrigley Field apparently has been harder to quantify, since it may require hundreds of millions of dollars in renovations.
The state-run Illinois Sports Facilities Authority offered about $400 million to buy Wrigley using taxable bonds that would be repaid with lease revenue. Those talks broke down in May over how the ISFA would finance renovations and improvements at Wrigley, the second-oldest ballpark in the country behind Boston’s Fenway Park.
Former Gov. Jim Thompson, who is chairman of ISFA, said his agency estimated the cost of improving the stadium structure and the player and fan amenities between $400 million and $600 million.
Tribune has said it is willing to sell the properties individually.
