I’m surprised it hasn’t been mentioned before now, but after Turner South (now sold to Fox) and the Braves went up for sale, I said Arthur Blank would be a cool owner, alas it appears that that particular pipe dream is over.

Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank has suspended his negotiations to purchase the Braves.

Blank met with representatives of Time Warner and Turner Broadcasting last week. But in a statement yesterday (Tuesday) from Blank aide Kim Shreckengost, the Arthur M. Blank Group cited an inability of the two sides “to reach a preliminary agreement on the sale” of the baseball team.

Sources familiar with the talks indicated last week that Blank used a monetary figure that hardly distinguished itself from those of other potential suitors. The sources said that adding the Braves to his portfolio might be too expensive for The Home Depot co-founder.

Blank paid $545 million for the Falcons in February 2002.

Forbes Magazine valued the Falcons at $690 million, the fourth-lowest ranking among N-F-L teams, last fall.

Forbes estimated that the Braves were worth $392 million. It estimated Blank’s net worth at $1.2 billion.

Oh well.. It’s a little over 5 weeks till opening day and 6 till the home opener on April 10th against the Phillies, best get your tickets in now…