Sale complete - UPDATE IN POST BELOW

Seidler Family Weighing Five Offers For Padres - MLB Trade Rumors

Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports that five prospective buyers have submitted bids. Previous reporting had identified Joe Lacob, José E. Feliciano and Dan Friedkin as suitors.

Earlier this month, Sportico estimated the franchise value around $2.31 billion. It seems the Seidler family is aiming a fair bit higher. Acee writes that people within the industry anticipate the sale price will land north of $2.5 billion. Rosenthal and Lin report that the Seidlers are seeking a purchase price closer to $3 billion than to the estimation from Sportico.

Anything north of $2.5 billion would be a record for an MLB franchise. Steve Cohen’s 2020 purchase of the Mets from the Wilpon family was for roughly $2.475 billion. That remains the high-water mark. More recent sales of the Orioles and Rays have landed in the $1.7 billion range. Peter Seidler’s group purchased the Padres for $800MM in 2012. The reports from the Union-Tribune and The Athletic — each of which are worth a full read for San Diego fans — suggest an agreement could be reached around Opening Day.

Edited 15 hours ago15 hr by rmc523

The Seidler family is nearing a deal to sell the Padres to a group led by private equity billionaire José E. Feliciano and his wife Kwanza Jones, per Jared Diamond and Miriam Gottfried of the Wall Street Journal. The deal values the Padres franchise at close to $3.9 billion, which would shatter the previous record for a big league franchise in a sale. Steve Cohen’s $2.4 billion purchase of the Mets in 2020 currently stands as the record.

Dennis Lin of The Athletic reported yesterday that the sale process was nearing its conclusion, suggesting that the Seidlers could find a price upwards of $3.5 billion. Per the Wall Street Journal duo, San Diego received multiple bids valuing the franchise at more than $3.5 billion. In addition to Feliciano’s group, the three finalist bidders were groups led by Golden State Warriors owner Joe Lacob, Detroit Pistons owner Tom Gores, and Dan Friedkin, who owns the English Premier League’s Everton club.

Seidler Family Nearing Deal To Sell Padres To José E. Feliciano - MLB Trade Rumors

MLB Owners Approve Sale Of Padres To José E. Feliciano, Kwanza Jones - MLB Trade Rumors

Major League Baseball announced that league owners have unanimously voted to approve the Padres’ new ownership group led by José E. Feliciano and Kwanza Jones. Feliciano will be club’s control person. There is still some rubber-stamping to do, as the league announced that the approval “remains contingent upon the closing of the transaction involving the controlling interest in the Club with the current owners of the Padres, which is expected in the weeks ahead.” The Padres also relayed the news, saying that Erik Greupner remains CEO while A.J. Preller stays on as president of baseball operations.

Commissioner Rob Manfred issued this statement as part of today’s announcement:

“On behalf of Major League Baseball, I thank John Seidler and the entire Seidler family for their stewardship of the San Diego Padres. 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.

“It is my pleasure to welcome José E. Feliciano and Kwanza Jones as the new majority owners of the Padres following today’s vote. 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.”

An agreement was finally reached in April, with Feliciano and Jones set to take over by agreeing to a $3.9 billion sale price. That figure was easily a new record, shattering the $2.4 billion that Steve Cohen spent to buy the Mets in 2020.

$3.9 Billion for the Padres is crazy.

Hopefully this valuation gets Sherman what he wants to get the fuck outta here