Per Alex Speier of the Boston Globe, the sale of the AAA Pawtucket Red Sox has been completed, and includes minority ownership by the Boston Red Sox. The sale is expected to be officially announced sometime today.
The Red Sox ownership group will work alongside local owners, and a move to Providence has been rumored.
The team will be purchased from principle owner Madeleine Mondor who assumed control of the team after her husband Ben Mondor passed away in 2010. The team was on the brink of bankruptcy and potential relocation when Mondor purchased the franchise in 1977.
The sale is the second minor league purchase for the Boston Red Sox ownership group, who purchased the single-A Salem Red Sox in 2007. Alongside prominent Rhode Island businessmen and attorneys, the Red Sox owners’ will control a minority share of the PawSox unlike the majority control they have in Salem.
The dollar amount of the sale has yet to be disclosed, but according to Forbes.com, the Pawtucket Red Sox are worth $19 million.
According to NBC 10 in Rhode Island, Pawtucket city leaders have been briefed on the sale, but would not comment on any specifics, or say if they’ll fight to keep the team.
500,000 fans attended McCoy Stadium in Pawtucket last season, averaging nearly 7,400 per night – good for ninth in the International League. Pawtucket led the league in attendance in 2006, when they drew 9,200 fans per game.
The PawSox have also reached three straight Governors’ Cup finals, including victories in 2012 and 2014, which book ended Boston’s 2013 World Series Championship.
Pawtucket’s close proximity to Boston (45 miles) makes the transition to the majors much smoother for young players, and a move to Providence (50 miles) would do very little to disrupt that convenience. Countless Red Sox stars have made their rise to fame through Pawtucket, including Dustin Pedroia, Nomar Garciaparra and Roger Clemens.
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