Sunday, April 02, 2000

Team comes first in Lindner era

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This owner won't be in limelight

BY CLIFF PEALE
The Cincinnati Enquirer

        Expect Carl Lindner's stewardship of the Cincinnati Reds to be just like the previous 50 years of his business career: Careful, meticulous and with a constant eye on the long term.

        Mr. Lindner, who led a group that acquired Marge Schott's controlling interest in the club last fall, will keep close track of the details until he feels comfortable owning the club, friends and colleagues said.

        “Carl will ask the same question 10 times until he feels comfortable he's got the right answer,” said Terry Jacobs, a former executive at Mr. Lindner's American Financial who now runs Regent Communications.

Carl Lindner chats with Reds first baseman Sean Casey. (Michael E. Keating photo) | ZOOM |

        While Mr. Lindner concerns himself with the Reds' financial bottom line, the bottom line for the team's fans is that he is determined to end the roller- coaster ride presided over by Mrs. Schott and return to the stability that signified the Big Red Machine of the mid-1970s.

        Mr. Lindner already put his stamp on the franchise when his staff negotiated — and he authorized — the blockbuster February trade and long-term signing of superstar Ken Griffey Jr., a Moeller High School graduate.

        That signaled a loosening of the strict limits that held down the Reds' payroll for several years. Observers called that a reflection of Mr. Lindner's tendency to plan for the long term, rather than next year's budget.

        “He's been extremely successful, and you can't beat success,” said Bob Howsam, who was president of the Reds from 1973-78 and 1983-85. Mr. Lindner was a limited partner during the second stint.

        Friends and associates insist that Mr. Lindner did not want to buy the Reds. He stepped in only when it became clear that a group headed by Cleveland lawyer Larry Dolan could gain control.

        Mr. Lindner is chief executive officer of Cincinnati Reds LLC. That group also includes Cincinnatian Louise Nippert, local businessman George Strike, New York money manager and Northern Kentucky native William Reik, Mrs. Schott, the trust of former owner Carl Kroch, and Gannett Co. Inc., owner of The Enquirer.

        Since the $67 million deal closed, the 80-year-old Mr. Lindner has followed the same patterns that have allowed him to amass a fortune that at times has topped $1 billion.

        His holdings include the collection of insurance companies that form American Financial Group, along with control of Chiquita Brands International Inc. and a significant investment in Provident Financial Group Inc.

        Mr. Lindner is chairman of both Chiquita and American Financial, an umbrella company for an insurance and investing empire that owns or manages assets of nearly $12 billion.

        Mr. Lindner's companies also own real estate around the country, including the fabled Grand Central Station in New York. And he is one of the nation's biggest political contributors.

        He and Reds chief operating officer John Allen — seen several times this year in Mr. Lindner's Fourth Street offices — have been tight-lipped about the team's operations. Mr. Lindner has long avoided reporters, apparently uncomfortable in the public glare.

        He declined repeated requests to be interviewed about his investment in the Reds.

        Mr. Lindner also has followed previous practice and immersed himself in many of the details of the club.

        Mr. Allen, who ran the club after Mrs. Schott's June 1996 suspension for disparaging racial remarks, said Mr. Lindner wants to know the details, but doesn't inject himself into day-to-day decisions.

        “I rely on (General Manager) Jim Bowden for the baseball side, and I just keep things together,” Mr. Allen said. “They are allowing Jim and myself to do our jobs.”

        That follows the model of Bill and Jim Williams, who owned the club before Mrs. Schott. They set an annual budget, then handed most of the authority to Mr. Howsam.

        “I think that's the way Mr. Lindner has always handled everything,” Mr. Howsam said. “He's had people who are qualified, whether it's family or anybody else.”

        The Reds' brain trust admired Mr. Allen's stewardship of the Reds during Mrs. Schott's tumultuous two-year suspension. He took the lead in negotiating a lease for a new ballpark with Hamilton County, and has been intimately involved in the design of the new ballpark.

        One member of Mr. Lindner's inner circle said Mr. Allen “fits our profile.”

        “Carl's been doing this very successfully for a long time and he's not going to change now,” Mr. Jacobs said. “If he thinks John Allen is the best guy to run the team, he'll run it.”

       

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