Gov. Wes Moore is losing big in Orioles negotiations | STAFF COMMENTARY

For all the drama that unfolded Sunday as the Ravens beat the Los Angeles Rams in a rain-soaked overtime battle in downtown Baltimore, it could scarcely hold a candle to the political spectacle that unfolded two days earlier as Gov. Wes Moore appeared to have finally locked down a long-term lease with the Orioles only to have the proposal quickly deep-sixed by Senate President Bill Ferguson. The official scorebook notation should read “E-63” — as in “error” on Maryland’s 63rd governor for seemingly signing off on a plan that would have handed over development rights for state-owned land surrounding Oriole Park at Camden Yards for the next 99 years.

Senator Ferguson recognized such a handout was a non-starter, particularly given the hundreds of millions of dollars the state is already committing to ballpark upgrades. Making matters worse, a recent report raised the possibility of the franchise being sold to a third party (billionaire philanthropist David M. Rubenstein, a Baltimore native). How would it have looked if Orioles CEO and Chairman John Angelos essentially took the money and ran, after spending months putting the squeeze on Moore? Clearly, Ferguson hadn’t been closely consulted, which is a mistake, given that he’s one of the most powerful elected officials in Annapolis and his district actually includes Camden Yards. And it’s not as if it was a secret that Ferguson wanted to keep the lease separate from any talk about an entertainment area; he said as much in August at the Maryland Association of Counties summer conference.

To quote a famous movie line, “There’s no crying in baseball,” but there ought to be some real tears shed on the governor’s team: The popular and charismatic Democrat is exhausting his political capital on keeping an already profitable Major League Baseball franchise in one of the country’s most beloved ballparks, by shoveling more money at it. Moore may yet strike a deal with Angelos before the O’s lease expires at the end of the year. But given the state’s overall budget woes (with multi-year deficits measured in the billions of dollars and the prospect of some serious cuts to government services as well as some likely tax increases to go along with them) is he really going to want to have his name attached to new spending directed toward a handful of ultra-wealthy individuals?

Let others debate the pros and cons of small-market baseball teams and payroll costs and the potential benefits of creating a “lifestyle destination” around Camden Yards like The Battery in Atlanta. What we see is more like a mini political Waterloo for the state’s top Democrat. Moore may have initially seen a mano a mano negotiation with Angelos that bypasses the Maryland Stadium Authority as a way to cut through bureaucracy and do something big for Baltimore. But right now, it just looks like he’s working hard for the benefit of a friend, and if continues in this direction it’s going to crush his credibility. Appearances count, and there’s simply no question that at almost no stage of this theatrical event has Governor Moore looked to be getting tough on Angelos to best represent the state’s taxpayers. In fact, he gave the Orioles CEO leverage in the deal by publicly announcing in September a nonbinding memorandum of understanding to eventually sign a lease that included a development rights agreement.

Make no mistake, we surely want the Orioles to stay. We remember the trauma of the Baltimore Colts departure nearly four decades ago. And we’re certainly not opposed to further development downtown, the kind that can help draw tourists to destinations including the Peninsula, Harborplace (reimagined or not), Camden Yards and M&T Bank Stadium. But we also want to feel confident that the taxpayers are served by achieving this goal. And the governor took this risk when he decided to bigfoot the MSA. Ferguson is right that no commitment should be made by the state until there’s an equally serious (or better) commitment made by a developer to invest in “The Battery Baltimore” or whatever you want to call it. Are we confident that the Board of Public Works will block a deal that doesn’t benefit the taxpayers’ interests? Probably, but must it come to that?

The governor may yet pull a rabbit out of his hat. Who expected the Ravens to win by way of a punt return by a backup? Sports aren’t always predictable. But so far, we’ll remember 2023 as the year of the Orioles lease that went from standoff to nonbinding “memorandum of understanding” and now to the governor’s personal embarrassment. Much more than a playoff seeding is at stake in this debacle.

Baltimore Sun editorial writers offer opinions and analysis on news and issues relevant to readers. They operate separately from the newsroom.