GotGibson?
Bench Warmer
The new owners of the Chicago Cubs have no immediate plans to shake up one of the most storied franchises in baseball.
Ricketts family members say there is no rush for adding big-name free agents, slapping a corporate sponsor on Wrigley Field or changing managers in the dugout.
"The Ricketts family is going to own this team for generations and so there's no reason for us to jump in with something that's splashy and might sound great for the few months but be a mistake," Tom Ricketts told Reuters TV.
"We have to be thoughtful, careful and deliberate," added Ricketts, 44, who along with three siblings closed an $845 million deal this week for the Cubs, Wrigley Field and a 25 percent stake in a regional sports TV network.
The deal closed a long process that began when the team went on the block in April 2007 after Tribune Co. agreed to an $8.2 billion buyout led by real estate magnate Sam Zell.
Tribune, which retained a 5 percent stake in the team, filed for bankruptcy last December.
Like other bidders, Ricketts, the team's chairman, had been eager to take control of the National League team. Despite not winning a World Series title since 1908, it has a huge fan base helped by its "lovable losers" image, national exposure on cable TV and a storied history that includes the "Billy Goat Curse" and several other well-known misses on the field.
According to legend, a Cubs fan with a pet goat was ejected from a 1945 World Series game at Wrigley Field, and put a curse on the team to never win another championship.
The Cubs lost the 1945 title to the Detroit Tigers and have not returned to baseball's championship.
"There is no curse. I'm not a believer," said the son of the founder of TD Ameritrade Holding Corp. "All Cubs fans need to look forward, not backward. Just move on."
Ricketts wants to preserve venerable Wrigley Field, beloved for its old-style feel and ivy-covered outfield walls.
"Wrigley has a special feel to it," said Ricketts, who lived across from the park during college and met his wife in its bleacher seats. "As we looked at becoming owners throughout this process, we knew we had to maintain that."
Nevertheless, he would not dismiss selling naming rights for the park, although no such talks are underway. Such a deal would generate millions of dollars in revenue for the club.
"If there's an extra sponsor, if there's an extra sign, if there's an extra name to the stadium, if that brings in more revenue and makes the team more viable and allows us to spend more on the stadium and more on the players, that's in your best interest and I think most fans get that," he said.
Ricketts said the team will research expanding to add concession and food options on a property immediately adjacent to Wrigley, a project long discussed. He thinks most of the funding would likely come from his family, which plans to reinvest profits in the ballpark.
Forming an outside company to boost non-baseball revenue or establishing a national Cubs TV network have not been discussed, he added.
The Ricketts family intends to keep the current clubhouse leadership in place, so manager Lou Piniella and general manager Jim Hendry can focus on a return to the postseason.
And Ricketts, like many eternally optimistic Cubs fans, believes the good times will return next season.
"If the players can play up to their historical standards, we're still going to be the team to beat," he said.
Ricketts family members say there is no rush for adding big-name free agents, slapping a corporate sponsor on Wrigley Field or changing managers in the dugout.
"The Ricketts family is going to own this team for generations and so there's no reason for us to jump in with something that's splashy and might sound great for the few months but be a mistake," Tom Ricketts told Reuters TV.
"We have to be thoughtful, careful and deliberate," added Ricketts, 44, who along with three siblings closed an $845 million deal this week for the Cubs, Wrigley Field and a 25 percent stake in a regional sports TV network.
The deal closed a long process that began when the team went on the block in April 2007 after Tribune Co. agreed to an $8.2 billion buyout led by real estate magnate Sam Zell.
Tribune, which retained a 5 percent stake in the team, filed for bankruptcy last December.
Like other bidders, Ricketts, the team's chairman, had been eager to take control of the National League team. Despite not winning a World Series title since 1908, it has a huge fan base helped by its "lovable losers" image, national exposure on cable TV and a storied history that includes the "Billy Goat Curse" and several other well-known misses on the field.
According to legend, a Cubs fan with a pet goat was ejected from a 1945 World Series game at Wrigley Field, and put a curse on the team to never win another championship.
The Cubs lost the 1945 title to the Detroit Tigers and have not returned to baseball's championship.
"There is no curse. I'm not a believer," said the son of the founder of TD Ameritrade Holding Corp. "All Cubs fans need to look forward, not backward. Just move on."
Ricketts wants to preserve venerable Wrigley Field, beloved for its old-style feel and ivy-covered outfield walls.
"Wrigley has a special feel to it," said Ricketts, who lived across from the park during college and met his wife in its bleacher seats. "As we looked at becoming owners throughout this process, we knew we had to maintain that."
Nevertheless, he would not dismiss selling naming rights for the park, although no such talks are underway. Such a deal would generate millions of dollars in revenue for the club.
"If there's an extra sponsor, if there's an extra sign, if there's an extra name to the stadium, if that brings in more revenue and makes the team more viable and allows us to spend more on the stadium and more on the players, that's in your best interest and I think most fans get that," he said.
Ricketts said the team will research expanding to add concession and food options on a property immediately adjacent to Wrigley, a project long discussed. He thinks most of the funding would likely come from his family, which plans to reinvest profits in the ballpark.
Forming an outside company to boost non-baseball revenue or establishing a national Cubs TV network have not been discussed, he added.
The Ricketts family intends to keep the current clubhouse leadership in place, so manager Lou Piniella and general manager Jim Hendry can focus on a return to the postseason.
And Ricketts, like many eternally optimistic Cubs fans, believes the good times will return next season.
"If the players can play up to their historical standards, we're still going to be the team to beat," he said.
