Boston Red Sox Owner John Henry Denies Franchise Up for Sale

Boston Red Sox owner John Henry denied a media reports today that team owners are quietly shopping the struggling team to potential buyers.

He said: “(Sox co-owner) Tom (Werner) and I speak 7 days a week. A sale of any kind is so far from our thinking it hasn’t even come up apart from technical planning issues involving death or disability, medicine ” said Henry in his email. “This report is completely without foundation. Regarding unnamed sources — any sale discussions that may have taken place were missing three key people — Larry, story Tom and me. The Sox and any of the other components of FSG are not for sale and will not be for the foreseeable future.”

Fox Business’ Charlie Gasparino reported that though no final decision has been made and talks appear to be in early stages, executives at Fenway Sports Group, which also owns the English football team Liverpool FC, are debating whether they have the money to run both teams, cited unnamed people with direct knowledge of the matter.

Forbes has valued the Red Sox at around $1 billion.

Though the team saved as much as $250 million through 2018 by unloading several players, sources pointed out to Fox Business that Henry’s investment company, John Henry & Co., has experienced poor performance. Sources added the biggest challenge for Henry is running two expensive sports franchises. Fenway Sports bought the Liverpool team for $476 million in 2010.

Fenway Sports also owns 80 percent of the New England Sports Network, where Red Sox games are aired, as well as the Boston Bruins. It remains unclear how the sports network would factor into any deal.