An announcement is due any day on which of three business groups, all with heavy political connections, has won the bidding for ownership of the Washington Nationals — a deal worth some $450 million.
D.C. Mayor Anthony Williams favors a partnership led by venture capitalists Frederic Malek, chairman of Thayer Capital Partners, and Jeffrey Zients, chairman of the board of The Advisory Board Company — two men with connections to some of D.C.’s heaviest hitters.
But Malek’s group has reportedly been hurt by the whispering campaigns it is rumored to have launched against the other bidders. Malek also carries political baggage dating back to when he was an aide in the Nixon administration.
ESPN’s Peter Gammons reported Sunday that the investment group led by Indianapolis-based media magnate Jeffrey Smulyan is favored by White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf, one of baseball’s most powerful owners.
Smulyan, the former owner of the Seattle Mariners, has promised to appoint an African-American as president of the Washington team. He confirmed to The Examiner on Monday that former D.C. U.S. Attorney Eric H. Holder is on “the short list.”
Bethesda-based real estate developer Theodore Lerner and former Atlanta Braves President Stan Kasten lead the third group. Lerner has lots of money and local talent.
A source familiar with the negotiations says Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig — who will make the decision — favors the group. But Williams is upset that Lerner hasn’t made himself available to city officials.
The Nationals, owned by MLB since 2002, have the potential to be a good investment. Forbes reports that the value of the team has quadrupled since baseball paid $120 million for the team that year.
But the deal is not a sure winner. Attendance has dipped this year and D.C. has twice failed to support a major league team. The Nationals can’t show their games onComcast because the cable company can’t reach an agreement with Baltimore Orioles owner Peter Angelos, whose organization owns the Nationals’ TV rights.
Protracted eminent domain battles with landowners in the stadium zone may delay construction and environmental standards for construction may drive up construction costs.
Smulyan group
» Leadership: Jeffrey Smulyan, chairman of Emmis Communications Corporation
» Strengths: Smulyan used to run the Seattle Mariners. The team posted its first-ever winning season under his direction. He was also credited with innovative marketing in setting up baseball’s first-ever kids section and “guaranteed no-hitter” nights. Smulyan says his media experience will help get the Nationals on television. He has also promised that the Nationals president will be an African-American.
» Weaknesses: Smulyan has been painted as an outsider. Some things also went badly in Seattle while he led the Mariners: He couldn’t get a stadium built and the team lost money. He was forced to sell the team after only three years.
» Smulyan says he’s the most fan-friendly of the would-be owners.”Even if you have a great baseball team, you’re going to lose 30 home games a year,” he told The Examiner Monday. “We want people to have a good time.”
Lerner-Kasten group
» Leadership: Real estate developer Theodore Lerner and family, former Atlanta Braves President Stan Kasten
» Strengths: Lerner and his family have deep pockets and extensive experience developing real estate. “By the late 1980s, one could assume that every adult in Washington had probably lived, worked or shopped in a building developed by Ted Lerner,” Washingtonian magazine wrote in inducting Lerner into its Business Hall of Fame in 2003. The Atlanta Braves have been one of the most successful baseball teamsin the past two decades. Kasten was at the helm as the Braves built a new stadium. Their group is reportedly favored by Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig.
» Weaknesses: Mayor Anthony Williams is cool to Lerner. The group does not have a large minority presence. The Braves can’t sell out home playoff games.
» Lerner spokeswoman Caroline Luz refused comment.
Malek-Zients group
» Leadership: Frederic V. Malek, chairman of Thayer Capital Partners, and Jeffrey Zients, chairman of the board of The Advisory Board Company
» Strengths: Malek has top political connections. He helped make President Bush an owner of the Texas Rangers and ran George H.W. Bush’s 1992 re-election campaign. Zients has also brought on heavy minority membership, including former Secretary of State Colin Powell, Howard University President Patrick Swygert and Washington super-lawyer Vernon Jordan.
» Weaknesses: In a meeting last year, Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig reportedly asked the group about disparaging comments it made about the other bidders. Malek also has some political baggage. As a Nixon aide, Malek once compiled a list of names of a “Jewish cabal” in the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Nixon thought the “cabal” was fixing economic figures to make his administration look bad.
» Malek did not return a call seeking comment.
