The San Diego Padres, the team where Song Seong-moon currently plays, is set to be sold.
ESPN reported on Tuesday that the Major League Baseball (MLB) team owners unanimously approved the sale of the Padres to an investment group led by private equity billionaire José Enrique Feliciano and his wife and business partner, Kwanza Jones.
In May, the Feliciano couple agreed to acquire the Padres from the family of the late owner Peter Seidler for a record-breaking 3.9 billion USD, the highest in MLB history.
Seidler’s family announced their intention to explore selling the team last November, just two years after Peter Seidler’s passing.
After a competitive process, Feliciano, co-founder of Santa Monica-based private equity firm Clearlake Capital, emerged as the frontrunner.
Feliciano, a native of Puerto Rico, now becomes the second Latino owner in baseball, following Arte Moreno of the Los Angeles Angels.
In a joint statement, Jones and Feliciano expressed that becoming the owners of the Padres means joining a larger family. The goal is clear: to bring a World Series championship to San Diego and build a sustainable organization that can compete for titles year after year. As active owners, it will leverage the energy, experience, and perspectives alongside the existing team, and invest ambitiously yet prudently in San Diego’s future.
Feliciano and Jones are scheduled to hold their introductory press conference at Petco Park on August 25.
Despite the ownership change, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Erik Greupner and General Manager A.J. Preller will continue to oversee the team’s day-to-day operations.