The news that the Seidler family lawsuit has been resolved earlier this week seems to be accelerating the sales process for the San Diego Padres, with Dennis Lin and Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic reporting that the initial bids are expected to be in around the end of February.
The acceleration isn’t surprising, but this would be a high-wire effort to get the sales process in under the wire before the regular season starts. It’s very unlikely that will happen given that bidders are usually thoroughly vetted by MLB, but it is theoretically possible, especially if the early leader in the clubhouse to buy the club submits the highest bid for the team.
That would be Joe Lacob, the 70-year old owner of the Golden State Warriors. Lacob’s basketball dynasty is fading, so perhaps he’ll turn his attention to turning around the Padres and trying to beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, although that doesn’t sound like something a man known for his business savvy would do.
Lacob has expanded his sports holdings recently to include the Golden State Valkyries of the WNBA, who just completed their first season. According to Lin and Vorkunov, Lacob has made previous attempts to purchase the Athletics, Los Angeles Angels and Los Angeles Dodgers. Lacob would not attempt to relocated the franchise according to franchise, which makes sense given the relative newness and ongoing viability of Petco Park.
The final price is a matter of intrigue at the moment. Forbes has estimated the value of the franchise at $1.95 billion, but the Seidler family is believed to be asking for much more. Lacob certainly has the resources to submit the winning bid, so perhaps there’s a match to be made with some negotiating.
The full list of possible buyers remains unknown, but two other owners of English Premier League clubs have also emerged as candidates. Dan Friedkin and Jose E. Feliciano have both been mentioned as candidates, and Friedkin is a native of San Diego who reportedly tried to buy the Boston Celtics last spring.
More candidates will undoubtedly emerge, but this is a tight window for bids that could easily be expanded between now and the end of the month, especially if the initial offers come in light.
The news seems to have stabilized the Padres to some extent after a quiet winter during which the team made very few additions. The news about the lawsuit and bidders coming on board won’t affect the Padres day-to-day operations, according to reports, but it will be interesting to see if GM A.J. Preller is allowed to make more moves now that a resolution to the team’s ownership situation is now in sight.