Due to the financial crises that has the world on the edge of the d-word. There are many concerns for each of us. The least of which should be the Chicago Cubs. But as a fan of this team, I wonder about their future. Will they be getting away from Sam Zell and the Tribsters by the end of the year. Probably not according to one of the leading candidates to buy the club Mark Cuban. According to Cuban, who was in town for the Mavs/Bulls game, the deal will at least be slowed and has changed due to the financial events around the world.

TRIBUNE– Cuban: Financial crisis will slow Cubs sale
BRIGHT ONE– Cuban: Economy has slowed Cubs deal
REUTERS– Market turmoil may delay Cubs sales process
FORT WORTH STAR-TELEGRAM– Dallas Mavericks win, but baseball is the talk

At the very least the price has dropped. Meaning Sam Zell is no longer going to get the billion dollars he imagined getting for the Cubs, Wrigley Field, and the teams share in ComcastSportsNet. This from the Reuters story referenced above:

It’s going to impact price,” said one person close to the auction. “If they’re looking to get top dollar on the Cubs, they better wait.

“People are just not going to be willing to play when they don’t know where markets are, where credit markets are, where capital markets are, where the fans are going to be in terms of buying tickets,” added the person, who asked not to be identified as the sale is ongoing.

Sam Zell has putzed around with this deal for nearly two years. Well, they may have just gotten burned big time. The club will no longer fetch the ridiculous numbers ($1.3 billion) that were reported back in the summer. One begins to wonder if the Cubs will just go down with the sinking ship that is TribCo.