Not the same Ricketts #17

TD Ameritrade Holding Corp.'s founder Joe Ricketts is now part of the crowd of potential buyers for the Chicago Cubs baseball franchise, the Chicago Tribune reported Thursday.

The Cubs team is up for sale because its owner, the Tribune Co., is selling itself to Chicago real estate mogul Sam Zell for $8.2 billion. That deal was contingent on the media company selling its non-core assets, including one of the most fabled franchises in sports.

Astronomical prices are expected for the Cubs. Forbes estimated the value of the Cubs at $592 million in April. Only four baseball franchises had higher values in the magazine's annual list: the Yankees at $1.2 billion, the New York Mets at $736 million, the Boston Red Sox at $724 million and the Los Angeles Dodgers at $632 million.

I know that this will be hard to believe, but Joe Ricketts really has nothing to do with the city of Ricketts, a sleepy little village in Western Iowa, but most of the rest of this website does.

We hope to see you at the Ricketts' Kids Day at Ricketts City Park & Shelter House.
Saturday, September 8, 2007 4 PM-10 PM

Don't forget, if you're from Ricketts, you're invited to their annual reunion, next year it will be on the fourth Saturday in July. If you're Joe Ricketts, maybe you'd like to come too, and bring the team, Ricketts has a ball diamond. Maybe they'd be willing to put on an exhibition. Or play the guys in the Fire Dept? Wouldn't that be great?

As for everybody else, if you have memories or pictures of Ricketts to share, email them to our webmaster: ted.mallory@gmail.com I'll even accept funny, kitsch, or corny "Not the same Ricketts" ideas. Help put Ricketts on the map!