The Steinbrenners are going to be the Yankees' bosses for a very, very long time.
On Wednesday, Marc Ganis, a sports business consultant who has worked with the Yankees for nearly a decade, said that the team will not be sold "basically forever."
"That I can tell you with knowledge of the situation," Ganis told ESPNNewYork.com. "They won't sell. This team is going to stay in the Steinbrenner family. It is both because they desire it and it has been set up this way. This team is going to stay in the Steinbrenner family for a very long time."
Ganis, the president of SportsCorp Limited, had been friends with George Steinbrenner for 15 years and consulted the Yankees on a number of projects.
There has been speculation that the Steinbrenners could sell following the death of their father. Hal and Hank Steinbrenner had been reluctant to be involved with the Yankees until three years ago. Before that, it appeared that Steve Swindal, then Steinbrenner's son-in-law, would take control of the team upon George's passing.
After Swindal and George's daughter, Jennifer, were divorced, Hal and Hank took charge of the team. Now, Hal is the one who is most in charge.
"It is not just George's wishes, but it is also the wishes of the family," Ganis said of keeping the team. "I have gotten to know George's children over the years and they know this is a part of their lives basically forever -- and they want it to be."
Ganis said the Yankees are worth roughly $1.6 billion, and the team owns 40 percent of the YES Network. Ganis valued the Yankees' YES stake at about $1.2 billion, going on the assumption that YES is worth $3 billion in total.
Ganis thinks the ethos of the company was driven by the Boss, whose passing will somewhat change the dynamic of the organization.
"What will be missing is the mythic figure of the guy who will keep everyone in line," Ganis said. "The guy who, if he hears is something is awry, will step in and take everyone to the woodshed in a big way."
Ganis thinks that the way the organization has been set up the last few years, when George faded into the background, is a precursor to the Yankees' continuing their financial might that translates to the field.
"Hal is quieter than George was," Ganis said. "I've seen it personally. He definitely has his father's strength -- even if he exerts in a more quiet way."
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