Peter G. Angelos, the longtime proprietor of the Baltimore Orioles who constructed a fortune as a class-action lawyer, died on Saturday. He was 94.
His dying was confirmed in a assertion from his household that was posted on the staff’s social media account, which stated that Mr. Angelos had “handed away quietly.” No trigger was given, although the assertion acknowledged that he had been unwell for a number of years.
Mr. Angelos’s dying got here as his household awaited approval by Main League Baseball homeowners to promote the staff — valued, together with its property, at $1.725 billion, in accordance with The Baltimore Solar — to David Rubenstein, the president of Internal Harbor Sports activities.
The sale was accepted on March 20 by the Maryland Stadium Authority board, which was required underneath the phrases of the staff’s lease for possession to be transferred.
Because the proprietor of the Orioles, Mr. Angelos, who grew up in Baltimore, endeared himself to followers by investing in free brokers to bolster the staff.
“Peter Angelos was a real Baltimorean,” Brandon M. Scott, town’s mayor, stated on social media. “His affect on Baltimore & Baltimoreans will dwell for generations.”
In recent times, as Mr. Angelos’s well being declined, decision-making concerning the staff’s prospects fell to his household.
A shrewd proprietor and businessman, Mr. Angelos started to make a reputation for himself in Baltimore as a member of the Metropolis Council from 1959-63, earlier than making an unsuccessful bid for mayor.
He went on to deal with legislation, and, throughout the Nineteen Eighties, he labored on a class-action lawsuit put ahead by metal and shipyard employees who claimed to have suffered from mesothelioma, a type of most cancers linked to publicity to asbestos.
The case was settled within the Nineties for greater than $1 billion, in accordance with The Washington Publish.
Mr. Angelos used a few of his earnings to then purchase the Orioles in 1993 for $173 million, which on the time was the very best quantity ever paid for knowledgeable sports activities staff in the US.
The core motivation to buy the membership, in accordance with his web site, was “so the staff might keep in Baltimore and as soon as once more get pleasure from native possession.”
All through his tenure, Mr. Angelos oversaw among the lowest moments within the franchise’s historical past, together with a stretch of 14 consecutive dropping seasons.
However there have been additionally moments of optimism and sound judgment; as an illustration, Mr. Angelos urged the supervisor Buck Showalter to hitch the staff in 2010, and, in 2012, the Orioles made a playoff run.
Mr. Angelos may very well be recognized to spend freely to maintain expertise throughout the ball membership, which garnered respect and paid some dividends. In 2014, the Orioles gained the American League East for the primary time in 17 years.
George Angelos was born in Pittsburgh on July 4, 1929, to Greek immigrants, in accordance with an ESPN profile. After Mr. Angelos recovered from appendicitis at a younger age, his mom modified his identify to Peter, dedicating his soul to the Virgin Mary.
He graduated from Japanese Faculty of Commerce and Legislation and the College of Baltimore College of Legislation, in accordance with his agency’s web site. All through his profession, he labored on lawsuits that efficiently recovered billions of {dollars} from the tobacco trade.
His father owned a tavern, and he instilled in his son a piece ethic that lasted all through his life.
“He by no means took a trip, and I’ve taken just a few in my life,” Mr. Angelos, referring to his father, instructed The Los Angeles Occasions in 1995. “What do I do? I do what my previous man did. I work.”
