Scottsdale, AZ (My Sportsbook) - Major League Baseball owners unanimously approved the sale of the
Milwaukee Brewers from the family of commissioner Bud Selig to Los Angeles investor Mark Attanasio.
"As one who has had a long history with the Milwaukee ball club, I am confident that Mr. Attanasio will be a dynamic and successful leader of the Brewers," Selig said. "Mark is a life-long baseball fan who will devote his considerable talents and energy to the club and to the fans of Milwaukee and the state of Wisconsin."
The reported buying price of the franchise was in excess of $220 million. The franchise was being run by Wendy Selig Prieb, daughter of the commissioner. It ends the longest-tenured ownership group in the majors, as Bud Selig was included in a group that purchased the Seattle Pilots in 1970 and moved the franchise to Milwaukee.
"I would like to thank the former ownership group, the longest tenured group in the game, for its support and its dedication," Selig said. "It has been a great honor for me to be associated with all of them, and I believe the fans of Milwaukee and Wisconsin should be grateful to an ownership group that met all of its challenges and had no other motivation than civic pride. On behalf of the outgoing ownership group, I would especially like to thank the fans who have generously supported the Brewers for the last 35 years and will continue to support them in the future."
The Brewers were then put up for sale nearly a year ago and the club has undergone a front office restructuring in recent years.
For Attanasio, he is expected to honor the team's 30-year lease to play in Miller Park. He has been employed by several investment firms in the last 20 years.
"This is an opportunity which is very, very exciting to me," Attanasio said. "It's just a terrific opportunity for our whole group and I want to thank them for that."
As a franchise, the Brewers have not had a winning season since 1992 and haven't been to the playoffs since 1982, when they were in the American League. That year, the Brewers lost to the St. Louis Cardinals in seven games in the World Series.
Last season, the Brewers went 67-94, finishing in last place in the NL Central for a third consecutive year.
