Reds president to fans who want them to sell the team: ‘Where are you going to go?’
Cincinnati Reds president Phil Castellini has a very clear message to any fans who think his family needs to sell the team.
If they don’t get on board with the current ownership, baseball will be leaving Cincinnati.
"Well, where are you going to go? Sell the team to who?” Castellini said on 700-WLW, via the Cincinnati Enquirer. “That's the other thing: You want to have this debate? .... What would you do with this team to have it more profitable, make more money, compete more in the current economic system that this game exist? It would be to pick it up and move it somewhere else.
"Be careful what you ask for."
It’s easy to see why Reds fans are upset with the organization.
Since the Castellini family purchased the Reds in 2006 — which they did for about $270 million — the team has had 10 losing seasons and only made the playoffs four times. They haven’t won a postseason series, and have gone just 2-9 in the playoffs.
The team also traded away Jesse Winker, Eugenio Suarez, Sonny Gray and Amir Garrett earlier this year largely in a payroll move.
Though he’s aware of their struggles, and that this season may not be much better, Castellini doesn’t get why fans want the team sold. In his eyes, any sale would result in the team being moved away from Cincinnati — which wouldn’t help hometown fans. The Reds have an estimated value of $1.19 billion, one of the lowest in the league, according to Forbes.
So at this point, he said, fans have no choice but to just hold on and trust in their longterm plan.
Here’s Phil Castellini’s response with @BrandonSaho to the comments on WLW today @WLWT #Reds #OpeningDay pic.twitter.com/mFsaZcKQBM
— Mark Slaughter (@MarkVSlaughter) April 12, 2022
“Are you gonna abandon being a Reds fan?” Castellini said ahead of their home opener. “Are you gonna abandon following this team? We haven’t abandoned it, we haven’t abandoned investing in the team and the community. The point is, how about everybody just settle down and celebrate and cheer for the team. You can hate on us all you want, we’re not going anywhere.”
Castellini then issued a statement on Tuesday night apologizing to fans for his comments.
“I apologize to Reds fans and regret the comments that I made earlier today,” he said, via The Athletic’s C. Trent Rosecrans. "We love this city, we love this team and we love our fans. I understand how our fans feel and I am sorry.”
