Minor League Baseball Experience

The two partners of the firm, Rob Owens and Linda Gach Ray, have extensive experience in Minor League Baseball.

Minor League Baseball Team Ownership.

From December 1996 through December 2004, Rob Owens and Linda Gach Ray were the sole owners and operators of the Helena Brewers/Provo Angels (Pioneer League).

In addition, from approximately 1997 through 2000, Rob Owens and Linda Gach Ray owned a minority interest in the Lancaster Jethawks (California League), where Rob served on the Jethawks’ Finance/Budget Committee.

Baseball Operations.   The two partners were hands-on owners and operators, involved in all day-to-day aspects of the Brewers/Angels. They have extensive personal experience in sales, marketing, promotions, sponsorships, budgeting, personnel decisions, community relations, local government relations, and game-day operations, and have handled every aspect of all of the revenue streams, expense issues, personnel issues, and operational opportunities and challenges associated with team ownership.

Baseball Rules/Procedures. The two partners have personal experience with all of the rules, regulations, and processes of Minor League Baseball, including the CIT process, the MLB affiliation process, various League procedures and requirements, and the relationships with Major League Baseball.

Franchise Relocation. The partners successfully engineered a franchise relocation, and spent significant personal time and resources exploring relocation options for the Helena Brewers. The partners responded to an RFP from the City of Provo, and negotiated, applied for, and acquired a desirable territory (Utah County, Utah) to which they relocated the franchise. This involved numerous issues regarding territorial rights and restrictions and franchise relocation under the PBA (Professional Baseball Agreement).

New Stadium Design and Construction. The partners were successful in efforts to obtain approval, design, funding, and construction of a new baseball stadium in Orem, UT and were active participants on the stadium architectural and design team, along with the College on whose campus the stadium was built, and the stadium was actually conceived and completed less than two years after starting efforts on that project. That stadium today remains one of the most cost-efficient new-stadium constructions in all of minor league baseball.

Naming Rights Sponsorships. The partners have extensive, direct, hands-on involvement with naming rights marketing efforts, and naming rights contracts, for stadiums, as well as for naming rights for discrete areas within stadiums, community programs, promotions, etc.

Stadium Leases. The partners have extensive personal involvement, as baseball operators and as lawyers, in the negotiation and drafting of various facility use agreements, including the many advantages, disadvantages, and pitfalls of various lease provisions, including the development of additional revenue streams from non-baseball events.

Valuable Relationships. The partners have excellent working relationships with  franchise owners in Minor League Baseball, various League Presidents, and numerous baseball executives, both at the Major League level and in Minor League Baseball.

Consulting. Since selling the Pioneer League franchise, the partners have periodically remained involved in the business of minor league baseball, in various consulting relationships.