It's been known since early April that the Lerner family is exploring a possible sale of the Washington Nationals.
When Barry Svrluga first reported that bombshell news, he left open the possibility of the Lerners — who purchased the club from Major League Baseball for $450 million in 2006 — possibly only taking on new investors, while still maintaining that a full sale remained the far more likely scenario.
In his Monday column, Svrluga made the case that this July could be "among the most important" in franchise history, considering the weighty decisions that could be coming down the pike and how they could be driven by what occurs this month.
Among those potential decisions is an apparent progression in Nats ownership's exploratory process, with Svrluga reporting that in recent weeks, "two potential ownership groups visited the Nationals in person, touring Nationals Park and sitting through presentations from high-level club staff in baseball and business."
"Another such in-person meeting with a third group is scheduled for this month, according to those people," Svrluga added. "More will certainly follow."
What's more, while the Lerners have publicly maintained that they are open to taking on new minority partners, "internally," Svrluga writes, "the expectation is that this is a sale, not an exploration."
"The sale won't be completed in July," he notes. "That's much more likely for November, when — if things run smoothly — a new owner could be approved at the next MLB owners meetings."
Svrluga shared some more insights into the potential sale in an appearance with 106.7 The Fan's 'BMitch & Finlay' on Wednesday, explaining that he's verified with people inside the Nationals organization that an outright sale is fully expected, rather than a cash injection from new partners.
"My thought from the start was that's not going to happen because why would somebody inject a ton of cash into the Lerner ownership group, but then have no say over how the franchise is run," Svrluga told Brian Mitchell and JP Finlay. "And that's been further verified by people in the Nationals organization who fully expect this is a sale, not just a restructuring."
"And in some cases, honestly guys, that has brought a little bit of energy to people who work there," he said. "Any type of change is unsettling potentially. Even if you're not crazy about your bosses, at least you know their proclivities, you know how to deal with them — change can be disruptive. But even though they have no idea who the new owner's gonna be, there is a chance that the new group comes in and says, 'Look, we see a ton of untapped potential here. We're gonna invest in X, Y and Z that will help you on whatever it is,' ticket sales or minor league operations, or all aspects of the business."
"You might get a sense that there's new resources and energy and commitment to building a championship club," he explained. "Obviously this franchise has won a championship. Obviously it was competitive for the better part of a decade. It's at a different ebb right now, but it's a really important summer for the future of the franchise. Not because they're gonna lose 100 games, but because there's gonna be a new owner at some point and a new direction going forward."
As for a potential timeframe, Svrluga says he's been told the expectation is that everything should be buttoned up by the end of the calendar year, rubberstamped by a vote to approve the new owner at November's owners' meetings.
"That doesn't mean that that's set in stone," he said. "There can be bumps along the way. But from people who know the process in general and people who know this process specifically, a November vote would not be surprising and a full ownership change before 2023 dawns would also be kind of the expected timeline."
After news of the potential sale first became public knowledge, Jason Bishop of The Sports Junkies reported that Wizards/Capitals owner Ted Leonsis had been in contact with the Lerners about possibly purchasing the Nationals, which has since been corroborated by multiple outlets.
"I can tell you he is not one of the groups that has been through and seen anything and I'll leave it at that," Svrluga said. "I'm hoping to get some more details on that. I'm not discounting his interest at all, I'm just saying right now, he's not one of the people that has seen what he would be buying."
Stay tuned for more information in Barry Svrluga's next column!
