Michael Gartner, former WSJ page-one editor, sells Iowa Cubs, gives proceeds to staff

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On his final day as principal owner of the Iowa Cubs, Michael Gartner surprised his staff with an unforgettable goodbye gift.

He shared profits from the sale of the Des Moines-based minor-league baseball team with all 23 of the club’s full-time employees.

Gartner didn’t reveal his intentions until Tuesday evening during a staff-wide gathering inside a ballpark lounge overlooking left field. As some employees scarfed down hot dogs and sipped beer and others watched from afar via Zoom, Gartner punctuated an emotional farewell speech by unveiling a stack of envelopes.

“Here are your new business cards,” Gartner joked.

“Everyone knew something was up because of the way he said it,” Alex Cohen, the team’s lead broadcaster, said.

What was actually inside those envelopes were checks worth a total of approximately $600,000, general manager and minority owner Sam Bernabe told Yahoo Sports. Gartner, Bernabe and the other three members of the team’s ownership group determined how much each full-time staffer received based on how long he or she had worked for the Chicago Cubs Triple-A affiliate.

The generous gifts unleashed a flood of emotion from the recipients. The team’s longest-tenured employee had tears rolling down his cheeks. Everyone from marketing managers, to stadium operations workers, to the janitorial staff struggled to find words to thank Gartner and his partners.

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