Tampa Bay Rays co-owner and CEO Ken Babby has sold his minor league baseball teams in Jacksonville and Akron, Ohio.
The buyer was Prospector Baseball Group, led by longtime sports executive John Abbamondi and tech investor/entrepreneur Ben Boyer. Major League Baseball approved the transaction on Tuesday. Terms were not announced.
The Jacksonville team also announced executive vice president and general manager Harold Craw was leaving with Babby to become the Rays’ senior vice president for community engagement and social responsibility. Assistant GM Matt Goudreau was promoted to be Shrimp president.
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In 2015, Babby's Fast Foward Sports Group bought the Jacksonville team, now a Triple-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins, and rebranded it as the Jumbo Shrimp two years later. Babby was the founder and CEO of Ohio-based sports ownership and management company.
Jacksonville City Council member Ron Salem praised Babby for the way he operated the team and spurred attendance.
“I love Ken Babby,” Salem told Jacksonville Today. “He’s done a heck of a job running the Shrimp, and [I] have enjoyed getting to know him. But I am extremely happy on his new position with the Rays. I think that will be positive for Jacksonville. … The person buying the team is someone who is in baseball already. I think we will be very comfortable with that process.”
Per the Shrimp’s lease agreement with the city at VyStar Ballpark, the city council signed off on the sale Tuesday.
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The Akron RubberDucks are a Double-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians. The PBG owners told the Akron Beacon Journal they were impressed with the “rabid fan base,” the downtown stadium (7 17 Credit Union Park), and the job that Babby had done since his Fast Forward firm bought the team in 2012.
Babby is allowing PBG to continue to use the "Affordable Family Fun" slogan for both franchises.
"I think the catchphrase of Affordable Family Fun really sums up what Ken stood for,” Abbamondi told the Akron newspaper. “It embodies everything we think as well when it comes to minor league baseball. It has to be accessible to fans. … The hot dog is $2.50? Yeah, that's not changing."
MLB introduced Babby and PBG owners over summer
Babby was part of the Patrick Zalupski investment group that purchased the Rays this year for a reported $1.7 billion.
“This is a bittersweet moment for me and for our family, but we also couldn’t be more excited about the future of Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp baseball,” Babby said in a written statement. “We were very careful in selecting Prospector Baseball Group as the new owner of Jumbo Shrimp, and there is no question John and his team will be worthy stewards of this beloved franchise, bringing the passion, integrity and commitment that this community deserves.”
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In anticipation of the Rays' sale, MLB introduced Abbamondi and Boyer to Babby over the summer, the PBG owners told the Sports Business Journal. They joined Babby at a Jacksonville game in August, “and very quickly became attracted to the two clubs,” Abbamondi said.
Boyer said it was apparent how much Jacksonville loved the Jumbo Shrimp.
“This is a special asset and a special city,” Boyer told Jacksonville Today. “We are going to work really hard to ensure that we are able to continue to grow it the same way Ken did.”
Jacksonville City Council member Ron Salem praised Babby for the way he operated the team and spurred attendance.
“I love Ken Babby,” Salem told Jacksonville Today. “He’s done a heck of a job running the Shrimp and (I) have enjoyed getting to know him. But I am extremely happy on his new position with the Rays. I think that will be positive for Jacksonville. …The person buying the team is someone who is in baseball already. I think we will be very comfortable with that process.”
Rays' front-office addition from Jacksonville
Craw, who joined the Jacksonville front office in 2015, brings over 25 years of experience from the minor leagues to Tampa Bay. That includes leading the rebrand to Jumbo Shrimp, after which he was named the Southern League's 2017 Executive of the Year. He also led a 25 percent increase in attendance, stadium renovations and the franchise's jump from Double-A to Triple-A.
“I am thrilled for Harold to realize a career dream of working in Major League Baseball after a highly successful tenure at all levels of Minor League Baseball," Babby said in a statement. "He successfully took the organization to new heights."
Abbamondi said the upgrades at VyStar Ballpark, adjacent to downtown's EverBank Stadium, have turned the facility into a jewel box. He says the group looks to invest further in the Jacksonville facilities and fan experience.
He and Boyer plan to meet with city leaders in the coming days.
Before Tuesday night’s council vote, Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan expressed confidence that the Shrimp’s new owners would not change what has made the team special and successful.
“I don’t think Ken Babby would sell this team to somebody who wasn’t committed to giving the same kind of experience to the people of Jacksonville,” Deegan said.
“It’s been such a part of who they are. … I always call them the most Jacksonville team ever, because they’re just very much Jacksonville the way they perform, the way they treat the crowd, everything. And I don’t see that changing at all.”
Information from Jacksonville Today's Will Brown was used in this report.
