- Kroenke Sports and Entertainment has a deal to buy a controlling interest in the Los Angeles Angels
- The Avalanche owner’s price is reported as a major league record above $3.9 billion
- Read below for what Stan Kroenke’s baseball purchase adds to his hockey portfolio
The man who signs the checks in Colorado just bought a baseball team.
Kroenke Sports and Entertainment announced Tuesday that it has entered a definitive agreement to acquire a controlling interest in the Los Angeles Angels from the Moreno family.
Closing is expected in the first quarter of 2027, pending approval from Major League Baseball.
Price is where this gets loud. Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times reported the Angels sold for a major league record, clearing the $3.9 billion the Padres went for earlier this year.
Britt Ghiroli of The Athletic put a number on it and added a caveat. Moreno is selling his majority stake, and the figure she reported is $4 billion.
Avalanche fans have watched this operation grow for 26 years. Kroenke bought the Avs and the Nuggets from Ascent Entertainment in 2000, and Colorado won the Stanley Cup in his first season running the building. The second one came in 2022.
Adding the Angels makes eight franchises in the portfolio. Kroenke also owns the NFL’s Los Angeles Rams, the NBA’s Nuggets, MLS’s Colorado Rapids, the NLL’s Colorado Mammoth and Premier League champion Arsenal.
Hockey fans have a data point on how the money flows. Kroenke’s Avalanche just gave Cale Makar the richest contract in NHL history at $20.4 million per season, so the cash has been there when Colorado wanted to spend it.
Los Angeles has not had a winning record since 2015 and sits at 53-85 right now. Moreno bought the club from Disney in 2003 and leaves after 23 years and six division titles.
He addressed the handoff in the joint release from the Angels and KSE:
“The Moreno family has been honored to steward the Angels for 23 years and we believe with KSE’s experience and success they are the best next owner for the franchise.”
MLB owners still have to sign off. If they do, Kroenke will control a two-time Stanley Cup champion and a baseball team that has not finished above .500 since 2015.
