Peter Seidler, the San Diego Padres owner who spent hundreds of millions of dollars to achieve the still elusive goal of bringing the city its first World Series title, died Tuesday in San Diego. He was 63 years old.
His death was confirmed in a declarations Padres Tuesday. A cause has not been released.
Seidler, who had twice undergone treatment for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, said in September that he would not attend games for the remainder of the season while recovering from a medical procedure in August.
Seidler hasn’t been shy about expressing his ambitions to win a World Series with the Padres, no matter the cost. Under his leadership, the Padres spent a lot of money on players in hopes of winning a title.
“I like to spend money,” Seidler said The San Diego Union-Tribune Last year. “You can’t take it with you.”
The Padres, who debuted in 1969, made history in 2019 when the team signed third baseman Manny Machado to a 10-year contract worth $300 million. At the time, it was the largest contract given to a free agent. The following season, in 2020, the Padres reached the playoffs, ending a 14-year playoff drought. They reached the National League Championship Series in 2022.
Commissioner Rob Manfred said in a statement Tuesday, Seidler “grew up in a baseball family.” Seidler was the grandson of Walter O’Malley, who stunned the baseball world in the late 1950s when he moved the Dodgers from Brooklyn to Los Angeles. Seidler was the nephew of Peter O’Malley, who took over the Dodgers after his father and oversaw the team to World Series titles in 1981 and 1988.
Peter Seidler was born on November 7, 1960, in Alhambra, California, to Terry Seidler and Roland Seidler Jr. He earned a bachelor’s degree in business from the University of Virginia, where he was a member of the Delta Upsilon Fraternity. Seidler also earned a master’s degree in business administration from the University of California, Los Angeles.
After working in the lending arm of Bank of America, Seidler in 1992 co-founded Seidler Equity Partners, a private equity investment firm. He made his fortune through his investment company, which manages more than $5 billion in assets, according to the Padres.
Seidler’s foray into sports began in 2012, when he formed an ownership group to purchase the Padres from John Moores. The group included his uncle Peter O’Malley, who left the Dodgers in the late 1990s. Seidler later took over as president of the Padres, after Ron Fowler resigned in 2020.
As president, Seidler pursued a more aggressive spending approach with the Padres, acquiring pitchers Yu Darvish, Blake Snell and Joe Musgrove before the 2021 season. The Padres reached the playoffs in 2022, qualify for the National League Championship Seriesin which they lost to the Philadelphia Phillies.
Entering the 2023 season, the Padres had one of the largest payrolls in Major League Baseball, with some — including the commissioner — questioning whether such spending was sustainable.
“I don’t spend too much time, if at all, thinking about what other people think. » Seidler said in February. “We think we have a great chance to go for this trophy and deliver San Diego its first parade – and with great seriousness and humility.”
Seidler awning The Union-Tribune in July that he planned for ownership of the team to remain in his family after his death.
Seidler is survived by his wife, Sheel, three children, nine siblings and his mother, Terry Seidler.
Petco Park, home of the Padres, opened its doors Tuesday afternoon for fans to pay their respects.
