The San Diego Padres are being sold in a deal that will set a new record for a franchise transaction, with ownership changing hands from the current group to a new buyer. The sale involves key parties in Major League Baseball and signals a major valuation increase for the team, underscoring rising franchise prices in professional sports.
Baseball Sports Business San Diego Padres San Diego Padres to be sold for record-breaking price April 17, 2026 by Grey Papke • Comments Facebook Tweet LinkedIn Reddit Threads WhatsApp Email Aug 8, 2017; Cincinnati, OH, USA; A view of an official San Diego Padres New Era on field hat against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports The San Diego Padres are finally set to be sold, and they will fetch a record-setting price for an MLB franchise. The Padres are being purchased by a group led by private equity billionaire Jose E. Feliciano and his wife Kwanza Jones, according to Jared Diamond and Miriam Gottfried of the Wall Street Journal . The sale price is said to be $3.9 billion, nearly $1.5 billion more than the previous record-breaking sale of the New York Mets to Steve Cohen. The sale should end the uncertainty over the status of the Padres, which has been in question since owner Peter Seidler died in 2023. There has been infighting among Seidler’s widow and siblings over who controlled the franchise since then, which has negatively impacted the team in certain ways. Feliciano is also the owner of Chelsea F.C. of the English Premier League. It remains to be seen whether he intends to maintain a high payroll, as Seidler did. Seidler bolstered the team’s payroll to nearly $250 million, but it has fallen closer to $200 million since his death. Forbes had estimated that the Padres would be worth $3.1 billion . One can only imagine how much money clubs like the Yankees or Cubs would fetch if they ever hit the open market.
Curated by Taleb Kabbara · Source: larrybrownsports.com
San Diego Padres
San Diego Padres: San Diego Padres is a Major League Baseball franchise that is being sold for a record-breaking price.
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