McAdam: What the plan to take the Red Sox public does -- and doesn't -- mean

According to numerous reports, the Red Sox are in discussions to partner with a private equity firm to publicly trade about one quarter of the franchise's parent ownership group.

Under the plan, approximately 25 percent of Fenway Sports Group -- which counts among its holdings the Red Sox, Fenway Park, NESN, Roush Racing Group and Liverpool Football Club - would be sold to Red Ball Acquisitions, which would then publicly trade its shares.

It's a complicated deal, potentially worth billions, and it should be pointed out that the deal is reportedly in the discussion stages. It's far from a done deal.

But if it is ultimately consummated, it would have a wide-ranging impact, some of which can't yet be fully known.

For now, here's what we know to be true....and false.

1. No, John Henry is not selling the Red Sox.



Despite some predictions -- most of which stemmed from the team's payroll reduction last year -- Henry does not appear to have any interest in divesting his share of the Red Sox, of whom he remains principal owner. It's been estimated that Henry's share of ballclub is somewhere in the neighborhood of 40 percent. (Were Henry to be classified as "majority owner,'' it would signify that he owns slightly more than half'; Henry has never been identified as majority owner). It's believed that chairman Tom Werner is the next largest stakeholder in the team, with a share estimated at about 10 percent.

There's been no indication that Henry, who turned 71 last month, is interested in selling the Sox, the team he's owned since 2002.

2. Billy Beane is not coming to work for the Red Sox.

The longtime Oakland A's executive, who has worked for that franchise for the last 30 years, agreed -- briefly -- to become the Red Sox general manager in November, 2002 when the team was searching for a top baseball executive. The new ownership group had dismissed former GM Dan Duquette earlier that year and spent the 2002 season with Mike Port serving as interim GM, assisted by Theo Epstein.

Henry convinced Beane to leave the small-market A's, promising to allow him to work a portion of the year in California so Beane could be close to his teenage daughter. But in less than 24 hours, Beane backed out of the deal, and the Sox soon promoted Epstein, making him the youngest GM in the game.

(According to Evan Drellich of The Athletic, the Red Sox made another run at Beane).

https://twitter.com/EvanDrellich/status/1315801032933376002?s=20

But Beane, who is co-chairman of Red Ball, would not be involved in any of the Red Sox Baseball Operations. Instead, he would mostly focus on adding other sports properties to FSG's portfolio, with a special interest in European soccer.

Beane is known as avid fan of the Premier League, and his interest in soccer in general is such that he has several times attended the World Cup, even if it's meant missing several weeks of the baseball season.

FSG's purchase of Liverpool in 2010 for £300 million has resulted in the club being valued at nearly £2 billion in 2019, proving to be an enormously lucrative investment. Presumably, it would be Beane's job to find other undervalued European soccer clubs for purchase.

Beane would be forced to divest himself of his current holdings in the A's, since Major League Baseball's bylaws prohibit an individual having a stake in two different franchises.

3. In theory, the deal could provide more working capital with which to operate the Sox.

By now, recent comments from the likes of Cubs chairman Tom Ricketts and Cardinals owner Bill DeWitt Jr. -- namely, that owning an MLB franchise isn't at all lucrative -- have been exposed as complete drivel. Twice in the last two years, MLB signed two national TV deal extensions, both of which had a 40 percent jump in rights fees. A third and final TV deal -- ESPN's current package -- must still be completed in the next year, and is expected to bring with it a similar escalation in rights fees, if not more since it's likely to offer additional playoff inventory thanks to a more permanent expansion of the postseason format.

Moreover, if MLB expands by two teams in the next few years, each existing franchise will realize tens of millions in expansion fees.

Still, due to its international appeal, investing in soccer teams may prove more lucrative. For example, while the Red Sox have increased in value nearly five times in the last 18 years, the purchase of Liverpool has already grown to six times the purchase price in a shorter (10 year) period.

How much of the new income would be re-invested into the Red Sox day-to-day operations, of course, is uncertain.

4. Yes, you, too, could own a piece of the Red Sox. Sort of.

Unlike, say, the NFL's Green Bay Packers, who are completely owned by hundreds of thousands of shareholders, purchasing the publicly-traded Red Ball would mean that you own a small stake in a investment group that owns a portion (reportedly, less than 25 percent) of the parent company of the Red Sox.

Got it?

In other words, don't expect that such a share would get you a seat at the table to help determine who the next manager of the Sox will be.