Wednesday, November 29, 2006

Nick buys a baseball team

Nick Lachey is putting his money where his mouth is - the sports superfan is becoming part owner of a baseball team. Lachey will be one-third owner and an active investor in the Tacoma Rainiers franchise, an affiliate of the Seattle Mariners. "It had always been a dream of mine to be involved in team sports in general, especially on a local level in your hometown," says Lachey, who describes himself as a "huge baseball fan [who] grew up in Cincinatti, and baseball is kind of religion there." A few years ago when his hometown team, the Cincinatti Reds, came up for sale, the singer says, "I made an attempt to become a part of the ownership. Unfortunately, it didn't work out, but it certainly reiterated my interest in having some kind of ownership involvement. So, when this opportunity came around, it felt like a great way to get involved." Lachey is also starting a basketball team with his friend A.J. DiScala. "Sports is - outside of entertainment - my passion," Lachey admits.