Report: David Blitzer nearing deal to buy minority stake in Guardians

David Blitzer, the part-owner of the NBA's Philadelphia 76ers and NHL's New Jersey Devils, is nearing a deal to purchase a minority stake in the Cleveland Guardians, sources told Eben Novy-Williams and Scott Soshnick of Sportico.

The deal would reportedly give Blitzer roughly 35% ownership of the team and include a path for the finance executive to eventually replace the Dolan family as the club's majority owner.

Blitzer would also reportedly acquire shares from John Sherman, who purchased a controlling stake in the Kansas City Royals in 2019 and is forbidden to continue retaining shares in other MLB clubs.

In addition to his stakes in the 76ers and Devils, Blitzer is a partial shareholder in the English Premier League's Crystal Palace FC, Bundesliga's FC Augsburg, and the New York Yankees' Triple-A affiliate, the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders. The 52-year-old serves as a full-time senior executive at Blackstone.

Blitzer and Apollo Global Management executive Josh Harris were rumored to be considering a bid for the New York Mets before billionaire hedge fund manager Steve Cohen purchased the team last winter.

Led by former attorney and principal owner Larry Dolan, the Dolan family has owned the Guardians since 2000. Dolan originally paid $323 million to purchase the team from the Jacobs family. Paul Dolan, Larry's son, acts as the club's CEO. Larry's nephew, James Dolan, owns the New York Knicks and New York Rangers.

Under the Dolans, the Guardians have won five AL Central titles and one AL championship despite routinely ranking in the bottom third of MLB payrolls. Forbes valued the franchise at $1.16 billion in March.