Angels News: LA Sale Update Including Target Date, Interested Parties and Expected Cost

The sale of the Angels is unlikely to be completed before Opening Day, but it will probably be the most expensive team sale in MLB history.

Angels owner Arte Moreno has the team up for sale, and MLB commissioner Rob Manfred has expressed hope that the sale would be completed — or at least a buyer decided on — before the season starts. But it looks like that probably won't happen.

According to Bob Nightengale of USA Today, the process is not going as quickly as Manfred had hoped.

"Sale of the Los Angeles Angels likely will not be completed by opening day, as Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred hoped. Prospective buyers are still being allowed to make bids with at least six parties expressing interest.

"The team is expected to be sold for a record $2.5 billion."

Last week, Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times broke down some of the parties interested in purchasing the Halos, including Golden State Warriors owner Joe Lacob and the owner of the L.A. Times itself.

"There are believed to be at least six parties considering a bid, including Lacob, Times owner Patrick Soon-Shiong, and an unidentified Japanese partnership. The parties are reviewing the Angels' financial data, with bidding expected to start next month."

The Dodgers sold for $2 billion nearly 11 years ago, and the Mets fetched $2.4 billion two years ago. If the Angels get $2.5 billion, it would be the highest sale price for a franchise in MLB history.

Moreno is just the third owner in Angels' history (or fourth, depending on how you define it). Singer and actor Gene Autry owned the team from its inception until his death, followed by his widow Jackie Autry briefly owning the franchise. The Walt Disney Company owned the team from the late 1990s until 2003, when Moreno purchased the franchise.