Sam Zell closed his acquisition of the Tribune Co. Thursday and indicated that he wants to sell the Cubs by Opening Day of the '08 MLB season. Many believe that if the Tribune Co. packages the Cubs, Wrigley Field and the its 25% stake in Comcast SportsNet Chicago, the sale price could exceed $1B. But in L.A., Bill Shaikin writes, "In an effort to make more money, Zell is exploring whether to sell those assets separately." Zell "even raised the possibility of selling what he called 'extraordinarily valuable' naming rights" to Wrigley. Zell: "Wrigley Field, the Cubs, all the land around it, everything is an asset of the company, including the right to name the park." Shaikin notes Zell's timetable "appears highly optimistic, because the bidding has not begun and [MLB] owners must investigate and approve a potential buyer." One of Tribune Co.'s sale advisors said that the deal "would be more likely to close when the season ended next fall than when it starts in April." MLB President & COO Bob DuPuy indicated that the Cubs' new management and "pending sale are on the agenda" for the January 16 owners meeting in Arizona. DuPuy said MLB Commissioner Bud Selig "will review the situation" ( L.A. TIMES, 12/21 ). In Chicago, Michael Oneal writes Zell is "serious enough about trying to sell [Wrigley Field] to the Illinois State Facilities Authority that he's holding up the sale of the Chicago Cubs to see if the concept has legs." Zell: "We have delayed, although they are ready, sending out the (offering) books on the Cubs until we had a better understanding of where [the sale of Wrigley] stands." Chicago Mayor Richard Daley would "need to approve a deal" ( CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 12/21 ). DON'T ZELL IT! The CHICAGO SUN-TIMES' Jay Mariotti writes under the header "Sell Wrigley Name? Go To Zell." Mariotti: "All I want [Zell] to do is sell the Cubs soon, hopefully to [Mavericks Owner Mark Cuban], and get out of the way. But already, Zell is trying to lighten the company's $13[B] debt burden [by selling naming rights]. ... Messing with the mystique of a global sports shrine would be committing aesthetic and historical suicide" ( CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, 12/21 ).
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