San Diego Padres Welcome New Owners At Press Conference

SAN DIEGO, CA — Kwanza Jones and José E. Feliciano were officially introduced Monday as the San Diego Padres' new owners.

One week after Major League Baseball and its owners unanimously approved the sale of the team for an MLB-record $3.9 billion, the husband-and-wife team spoke at an introductory news conference of their commitment to forging a winning culture, while also honoring the path paved by the team's prior chairman, the late Peter Seidler.

Feliciano said of Seidler, "He has left this team, this club, this community, this city in an incredible place and we're just lucky and very fortunate to be the stewards of that legacy. But of course, we want to move that forward. We want to create new memories and hopefully continue that legacy in a way that honors it and furthers it."

Feliciano, who called the acquisition "a dream come true," said that with the goal of winning in mind, they would look to be "aggressive" in terms of spending when necessary, "but we're always going to do it with keeping the long-term health of the team in mind."

Jones said they would be "competitive" in doing what it takes to ensure the team's success.

"We want to win," she said.

Feliciano jokingly noted that the team is undefeated since the sale closed last Friday, as the Padres are coming off a three-game sweep of the Minnesota Twins over the weekend.

The Padres are in the middle of a postseason push, currently holding the third National League Wild Card spot. A playoff berth would mark the first time in team history that the Padres have made the postseason for three consecutive seasons.

Feliciano, who is a co-founder of the Santa Monica-based Clearlake Capital Group, the majority shareholder of the parent company of Chelsea of the English Premier League, said one distinction with their investment into the Padres is "a time horizon here as owners" that is "probably going to be much longer."

The Padres will continue to be led day-to-day by CEO Erik Greupner and President of Baseball Operations and General Manager A.J. Preller, according to an MLB statement.

Commissioner of Baseball Rob Manfred said in a statement congratulating Jones and Feliciano, "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."

— City News Service