Angels Entering Great Unknown

Jackie Autry, the widow of the Angels’ founding owner, thanked Disney for its dedication to the legacy of Gene Autry but said Wednesday she would have preferred the company sell the team to a local buyer.

Disney reached agreement in principle Tuesday to sell the Angels to Phoenix businessman Arturo Moreno for $180 million, subject to the approval of major league owners. Neither Disney officials nor Moreno would comment Wednesday, amid indications neither side might discuss the deal until owners approve it, which could be weeks -- or months -- from happening.

That silence created some tension within Angel offices, where shiny new World Series championship rings were worn by employees uncertain whether Moreno would replace any, or many, of them.

“We told them not to worry about the unknown,” said Tim Mead, vice president of communications, “because the unknown can be pretty good.”

When Disney bought the Angels from the Autry family in 1996, the company fired 25 employees, opting in many cases to merge operations with the Mighty Ducks in such off-field departments as sales, marketing and ticketing. In several areas, Disney later restored separate departments for each team.

Disney chose Moreno over theater operators James and Robert Nederlander and Boston developer Frank McCourt. Former commissioner Peter Ueberroth, who was outbid by Disney when the Autry family sold in 1995, expressed interest in buying the Angels this time but declined to enter a bidding process.

“I was rooting for Peter Ueberroth or the Nederlanders,” Jackie Autry said, “who I know, and who I know are committed to Orange County. I am mystified that Major League Baseball would consider approving someone who doesn’t live in Orange County. They were always strict about that, and maybe that’s one of the things the ownership committee will address, although I’m presuming that maybe Mr. Moreno will be moving into the county.”

John Henry, the former owner of the Florida Marlins, bought a residence in Boston after buying controlling interest in the Red Sox in 2001. But the majority owner of the Seattle Mariners, Nintendo owner Hiroshi Yamauchi, lives in Japan.

Under the agreement in which the Autrys sold the Angels to Disney, any subsequent owner must continue to provide Jackie Autry with an owners’ suite and eight box seats.

Autry said she has not met Moreno and reiterated she had no interest “in making a financial investment in the club” but would “always maintain a rooting interest” and hoped that Moreno would continue to honor Gene Autry’s history with the team. She also saluted Disney Chairman Michael Eisner, who graciously stepped into the background -- and into Autry’s shadow -- when the Angels won their first World Series title last October.

Eisner and Disney, she said, “have been more than generous to me personally and have done a wonderful job in keeping Gene’s name alive in Orange County. I’m going to miss their involvement.”

Moreno’s behind-the-scenes involvement with the Angels could begin as soon as lawyers complete the task of turning the agreement in principle into a formal document. In the months between the time Disney agreed to buy the team from the Autrys and the time the company assumed control, the Autry management could not spend more than $50,000 or sign any contracts for longer than one year without Disney approval.

Similar clauses are standard in sale documents, in much the same way you could not sell your house and then obligate the buyer to pay for remodeling without his permission. So, even though General Manager Bill Stoneman has an $84-million budget and a $76-million major league payroll, he would probably not be allowed to add salary in a midseason trade without clearance from Disney and Moreno.

The $180-million sale price, below the estimates of analysts and far below Disney’s original asking price, nonetheless reflects the uncertainty that this year’s revenue increases can be sustained if the team fails to return to the playoffs and red shirts and rally monkeys stop flying off shelves.

The Angels hiked ticket prices to record levels this year, then sold a record number of season tickets, generating revenue that simply kept pace with the rising payroll -- and with continued operating losses. They sold so many tickets that they must now pay into baseball’s revenue-sharing system for the first time, at a projected cost of $7 million.

The Angels must also pay the city of Anaheim $2 for each ticket sold beyond 2.6 million, an attendance level never previously reached under Disney management but an achievement that could cost the team as much as $800,000 this year.

New owners commonly generate additional revenue by raising ticket prices and negotiating new cable television contracts, but the Angels hiked prices 25% last winter, and the team is bound to a 10-year deal with Fox Sports Net.

Whether the Angels can sustain a payroll that ranks among the top 12 in the majors is a question Disney was determined to pass along to another owner. Moreno must choose among slashing payroll, finding revenue sources that Disney could not or simply subsidizing millions in losses every year.

In the current economic environment, Autry said, an asset that continually loses money is “no asset at all” and is “basically just a play toy.”

Said Autry: “We didn’t have the resources to treat it as a play toy, and Disney couldn’t, because it had to answer to its stockholders.”

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On the Money

A look at what the 30 Major League Baseball teams are worth in millions, according to Forbes Magazine:

1. New York Yankees...$849

2. New York Mets...$498

3. Boston Red Sox...$488

4. DODGERS...$449

5. Atlanta Braves...$423

6. Seattle Mariners...$385

7. San Francisco Giants ...$382

8. Chicago Cubs...$335

9. Texas Rangers...$332

10. Cleveland Indians...$331

11. Houston Astros...$327

12. Baltimore Orioles ...$310

13. St. Louis Cardinals...$308

14. Colorado Rockies ...$304

15. Arizona Diamondbacks...$269

16. Philadelphia Phillies...$239

17. Detroit Tigers ...$237

18. Chicago White Sox...$233

19. San Diego Padres...$226

20. ANGELS...$225

21. Pittsburgh Pirates...$224

22. Cincinnati Reds...$223

23. Milwaukee Brewers...$206

24. Oakland Athletics...$172

25. Toronto Blue Jays...$166

26. Kansas City Royals...$153

27. Minnesota Twins...$148

28. Tampa Bay Devil Rays...$145

29. Florida Marlins...$136

30. Montreal Expos...$113

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Good Value Judgment

George Steinbrenner bought the New York Yankees in 1973 for $10 million. According to Forbes magazine, the team is currently valued at $849 million. A closer look at the 2002 Yankees, who have the highest payroll in baseball:

* Revenue...$223 million

* Operating income... $16.1 million

* Player expenses... $141 million

* Gate receipts... $96 million