Does He Get the Rights To The Crappy Danny Glover-Tony Danza Movie, Too?

Arturo Moreno and Disney have reportedly come to an agreement in principle on the sale of the Anaheim Angels for $180 M.

Disney bought the team piecemeal from the Autry family for a total of $147 M. That's a tidy $33 M profit in five years on a team that Disney has openly tried to divest itself of for some time.

I love this quote from ESPN:

The company also spent nearly $100 million to refurbish the team's stadium, renaming it Edison Field.

According to Ballparks.com that figure is a bit high:

On April 3, 1996, the city of Anaheim and the Walt Disney Corporation agreed on a deal that will keep the Angels in Anaheim until at least the year 2018. Disney committed $88 million and the city $30 million to a three-year renovation of Edison International Field to a more compact, baseball-only facility. The team changed its name to the Anaheim Angels for the 1997 season. The city provides 12,500 parking spaces on site for baseball and Disney operates the stadium and retains all monies until agreed income thresholds are met. The agreement calls for the Angels to lease Edison International Field for 33 years (3 for renovation and 30 for operation), but the team has the option to leave after 20 years of operation. Anaheim's plans for a sports and entertainment complex will be scaled back to 40 acres but Disney has agreed to allow the city to build a football stadium next to the ballpark...Name changed to Edison International Field in 1997 under a $50 million, 20-year sponsorship deal.

So I'm sure that the $88 M (not "nearly $100 M") will be amortized over the course of the agreement. Also, according to ESPN's Edison Field page:

The new name was announced on Sept. 15, 1997, Edison International Field of Anaheim. The name represents the stadiums sponsorship agreements between Anaheim Sports inc. and Edison International. New features added to Edison International Field of Anaheim Information were terraced bullpens in the outfield, widened concourses, new restrooms and concession area, and state-of-the-art club-level and dugout-level suites. In addition, Edison International Field has three full-service restaurants. The renovation was estimated at $100 million.

So what happened to the extra $18 M, the difference between the original estimate ($118 M, 88 of which came from Disney) and the final estimate ($100 M)? I suspect that Disney found a way to lessen that $88 M debt, but that's just my suspicion. Someone got back $18 M though.

Also, note that Anaheim Sports, Inc., not Disney got the $50 M for the Edison name change. But guess what, Anaheim Sports, Inc. is a subsidiary of Disney. I doubt that those funds will go to Moreno.

And as I am sure you know, Disney owns ABC who owns ESPN. Isn't that cozy? No wonder they overestimate the costs of the staium renovation in Disney's favor and don't even mention the sponsorship deal. This is the kind of funny money that allowed the owners to cry poverty in the first place.

All said, I'm glad that Disney's getting out of the baseball biz: maybe without the conflict of interest ESPN's reportage of baseball's finances will be accurate.