Lead investor David Rubenstein (l) said that he felt Michael Arougheti “would be the ‘logical person’ to one day replace him as controlling owner of the Orioles"Daniel Shirey/MLB Photos via Getty Images
Orioles co-owner Michael Arougheti could have a “major role” in making crucial decisions for the franchise “for decades to come,” as controlling owner David Rubenstein said that he felt Arougheti “would be the ‘logical person’ to one day replace him,” according to Kyle Goon of the BALTIMORE BANNER. They “have not formalized a deal,” and any transfer of control “would require MLB approval at the time it is proposed.” Goon writes for now, though, the 51-year-old “seems to be having the time of his life owning a part of the baseball team.” Goon reports that before Rubenstein’s “vision to buy the Orioles started to crystallize,” Arougheti had been “looking to buy a stake in a team.” When Arougheti “called him that year to ask if he was buying the Orioles,” Rubenstein “took note.” When sale talks “heated up” with John Angelos last fall, Rubenstein reached out to Arougheti “asking if he was interested -- but in a larger stake.” MLB owners cannot prearrange succession of franchises, but in “Rubenstein’s estimation,” Arougheti, a “shrewd businessman 23 years his junior … with a passionate understanding of baseball makes for a natural successor.” Rubenstein said, “I’ll be at an age, at some point, where I probably won’t be as good at running things as I am now.” Goon writes that a number of “questions are still ahead” for the new ownership group, including whether they will “allow the Orioles’ payroll to grow, sign homegrown stars to contract extensions or follow through with a plan to redevelop parts of the Camden Yards complex” (
BALTIMORE BANNER, 6/28).
