Orioles CEO John Angelos got really weird when a Beat reporter asked a question about… the Orioles. Image: Getty Images
Walk into any bar in Baltimore and randomly call out the name “Angelos”. Chances are someone within earshot has some sort of visceral thoughts about the family that owns much of the Orioles. Like Steinbrenner in the Bronx or Buss in Los Angeles. The patriarch of the Angelos family, Peter, is 93 years old. The team’s CEO, son John Angelos, is also the President and Chief Operating Officer of the Mid-Atlantic Sports Network (MASN), which broadcasts the O’s games locally. John Angelos’ brother, Louis, sued John and their mother, Georgia Angelos, last June for control of the Orioles.
What does Angelos think of a press conference?
For the first time since the lawsuit was filed, John Angelos was made available to reporters on Monday, which was also Martin Luther King Jr. Day. His rare public appearance came alongside Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott as the team pledged $5 million to the CollegeBound Foundation, a nonprofit organization that helps Baltimore’s youth graduate from college. And with the Orioles’ lease from the Maryland Stadium Authority expiring at the end of this year, there are plenty of questions the family needs to answer publicly. Enter The Athletic’s Dan Connolly, a fixture in the rhythm of the Orioles for around 20 years and someone the Angelos family should know like the back of their hand as they read reviews of their beloved team.
At a press conference where John Angelos was choosing the time and date, he would be an idiot not to know questions were coming to the team. Showing up at an event to promote something in front of reporters and TV cameras is never strictly public relations in the world of professional sports. After all, the Angelos family’s tenure on the Orioles is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year. So, not sure when the next opportunity to ask John about his state of affairs will come, Connolly asked a long but fair question about the Angelos family and the long-term future of the Orioles in Baltimore. Connolly also directed a question to Scott about how he feels about organizing charitable events like the Orioles donation with an upcoming sale of the team.
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What happened next was a mere distraction from Angelos, as if his preparation for answering media questions had failed. Citing MLK, he said the questions were inappropriate at a press conference he called. Reporters never select the dates or times of media availability. Beat writers are left to the will of the teams they cover. When they make players, coaches and team leaders available is entirely up to the school or franchise representatives. Connolly didn’t swear, attack personally, or even use a stern tone with Angelos. He presented facts and asked a series of questions that die-hard baseball fans would like to know the answers to. Connolly serves his readership and part of his job is to be their eyes, ears and bullhorn.
The Orioles have been mired in bad baseball for decades
Connolly says an Orioles spokesperson confirmed media members covering the ceremony and the team would be able to ask Angelos questions at the end of the event. This was not a paparazzi situation or an informal or improper setting to hold those in power accountable. Chairs were set up for the media in front of where Angelos and Scott spoke. When Angelos went berserk and decided to make an example of Connolly for asking him a detailed question unrelated to bringing a music legend to Camden Yards in his first media appearance in more than four years, it was less successful than Walter Mondale’s 1984 Presidential Campaign.
I will not share large parts of Angelo’s answer. The full video is included above for your viewing pleasure. And frankly, the four-minute word vomit always sounds farther from reality. To refer to someone as “out of touch” in the context where Angelos used it was incomprehensible. Announcing the farm system and the team’s turnaround in 2022 without a fact-checker doesn’t detract from how he’s gone out of his way to call MLK, saying Connolly’s questions are unfit for the day. Although Angelos knew he had to answer questions on a federal holiday.
It’s just another day when a person in power tries to avoid taking responsibility for their actions or believing that they are above the general flow of life. Talk about out-of-touch behaviors. And Scott never spoke up. The best part of Angelos’ response of being “very transparent” was the offer to show reporters the Orioles’ finances and government decisions. That would be quite a reversal of the way the organization was run. Baltimore’s sports media would eat that up. I doubt that Angelos will remain faithful to this decree. And as expected, that would be far from his candid projection. It would be more the same for the Orioles, who have won two playoff series since 1998.
