MLB owners unanimously approve Padres sale to José E. Feliciano and Kwanza Jones

Major League Baseball owners on Monday unanimously approved billionaire investors José E. Feliciano and Kwanza Jones as the new owners of the San Diego Padres.

The vote, which was conducted by conference call, concluded a process that began in April when Feliciano and Jones agreed to purchase the team from the Seidler family at a record valuation of $3.9 billion. The husband-and-wife duo is buying more than 40 percent of the franchise, with other individuals and entities joining them at a smaller combined percentage.

“It is my pleasure to welcome José E. Feliciano and Kwanza Jones as the new majority owners of the Padres following today’s vote,” MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said in a statement issued by the league. “José and Kwanza understand the unique place the Padres hold in San Diego and the powerful bond between the club and its fans. We look forward to their leadership of the Padres and to working with them to build on the club’s strong foundation in a market that is so important to Major League Baseball.”

The sale is expected to close near the end of this week, according to people close to the situation, who spoke anonymously so as to openly discuss the process. The Padres plan to introduce Feliciano and Jones at a Petco Park news conference next Monday.

“We are a family first, and becoming owners of the San Diego Padres means joining an even larger one,” Feliciano and Jones said in a statement released by the team. “We are grateful to the Seidler family, and especially to Peter, for raising the expectations of what this franchise can achieve. We have built our life and our work together, and we will bring that same shared purpose, commitment, and determination to our stewardship of the Padres.

“Our ambition is clear: to bring a World Series championship to San Diego and build an enduring organization capable of competing for championships year after year. We intend to be engaged owners, bringing our energy, experience, and perspective while working alongside the talented team already in place and investing ambitiously and thoughtfully in the Padres’ future.”

The sale establishes a new benchmark for an MLB franchise valuation. The previous record for a transfer of control was set in 2020, when Steve Cohen bought the New York Mets for $2.4 billion. Despite playing in one of MLB’s smallest media markets, the Padres rank toward the top of the sport in revenue, which led to a competitive bidding process after the team went up for sale in November.

According to people close to the matter, who spoke anonymously to candidly discuss the sale, Feliciano’s and Jones’ ownership group includes longtime Padres minority owner Alfredo Harp Helú, who is said to be increasing his investment; Joey and Jesse Buss, the youngest sons of former Los Angeles Lakers owner Dr. Jerry Buss; and Behdad Eghbali, Feliciano’s fellow co-founder and managing partner at private equity firm Clearlake Capital. Eghbali’s involvement as an incoming minority owner had not been previously reported. Some members of the Seidler family are also retaining at least a portion of their stakes in the team.

Feliciano, whose net worth Forbes estimates at $3.9 billion, and Eghbali have been among the co-owners of Chelsea FC since 2022, when Clearlake Capital bought a majority stake in the Premier League club. Feliciano, Jones and Eghbali are funding their investments in the Padres with their personal fortunes. Feliciano on Monday was named the Padres’ new control person — MLB requires each franchise to designate one owner to be accountable to the league for the operation of their team — but he and Jones plan to jointly run the team as principal owners.

Jones, who met Feliciano while both attended Princeton University, is the founder and CEO of media and personal development company Supercharged. She and her husband co-founded the Kwanza Jones & José E. Feliciano Initiative, an investment and philanthropic organization that has committed more than $500 million to various efforts.

Feliciano and Jones will oversee a Padres team seeking its fifth postseason berth in seven years. San Diego, still without a World Series title, has won 17 of its past 22 games and currently occupies the National League’s final wild-card spot.

The Padres were previously sold in 2012 to a group led by Peter Seidler and Ron Fowler, who bought the team for $800 million. Seidler, a nephew of former Los Angeles Dodgers owner Peter O’Malley, became the team’s control person in 2020 and oversaw franchise-record spending until his death in 2023. His widow later sued two of his brothers, accusing them of breaches of fiduciary duty and fraud in their roles as trustees of Seidler’s trust.

Another Seidler brother, now-former Padres chairman John Seidler, announced in November that he and his family had begun exploring a potential sale of the team. Sheel Seidler, Peter’s widow, dismissed most of her claims against her brothers-in-law early this year.

“On behalf of Major League Baseball, I thank John Seidler and the entire Seidler family for their stewardship of the San Diego Padres,” Manfred said in the league’s official statement. “Continuing the legacy established by the late Peter Seidler, the Padres reached the postseason four times in the last six years, energized one of baseball’s most passionate fanbases, and strengthened the club’s role as a cornerstone of the San Diego community. We appreciate the Seidler family’s longstanding commitment to our National Pastime and their many contributions to the game.”