| Peter Seidler | |
| Birth Date: | 7 November 1960 |
| Birth Place: | Alhambra, California, U.S. |
| Death Place: | San Diego, California, U.S. |
| Spouse: | Sheel Seidler |
| Children: | 3 |
Peter Seidler (November 7, 1960 – November 14, 2023) was an American businessman. He was the chairman of the San Diego Padres of Major League Baseball (MLB).
Seidler was born in Alhambra, California, on November 7, 1960.[1] [2] He was the grandson of Walter O'Malley, who had owned the Brooklyn Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB) and relocated them to the West Coast to become the Los Angeles Dodgers, and nephew of Peter O'Malley (who inherited the team).[2] Seidler earned a bachelor's degree in finance from the University of Virginia and a Master of Business Administration from the University of California, Los Angeles.[2] While at Virginia, he joined the Delta Upsilon fraternity.[3]
In 1992 Seidler founded Seidler Equity Partners, a private equity firm, in Marina del Rey, California, which he served as managing partner.[1] Among the companies in which the partnership has invested is LA Fitness and music publishing company Hal Leonard, acquiring a majority ownership in June 2016.[4] In 2018, the firm partnered with MLB to purchase Rawlings for $395 million.[5] The firm had an estimated $1.8 billion in assets under management in 2020[6] and $3.5 billion in 2023.[7]
In 2012, Seidler, his uncle Peter O'Malley, and Ron Fowler formed the O'Malley Group, which purchased MLB's San Diego Padres from John Moores for $800 million.[8] The team increased spending in an attempt to contend for a championship, acquiring Matt Kemp, Justin Upton, and James Shields.[9] On November 18, 2020, MLB approved the transfer of the role of chairman from Fowler to Seidler, who purchased part of Fowler's stake in the team to become the largest stakeholder.[10]
Seidler increased the Padres' payroll to $214 million for the 2022 season, which was the sixth-highest in MLB. The Padres reached the 2022 National League (NL) Championship Series.[11] Payroll was increased to $237 million for the 2023 MLB season, the third-highest in MLB. He authorized the acquisitions and contract extensions to star players, including Xander Bogaerts, Yu Darvish, Manny Machado, Fernando Tatís Jr., Juan Soto, Josh Hader, and Joe Musgrove.[12] The team went 82–80 and finished third in the NL West.[13]
Seidler and his wife, Sheel, had three children.[14] They lived in La Jolla, California.[15]
Seidler had type 1 diabetes. He also survived two bouts with non-Hodgkin lymphoma.[14]
In September 2023, Seidler announced that he had undergone a medical procedure which would prevent him from attending any further games in the 2023 season.[16] He died in San Diego on November 14, 2023, at age 63.[17] [18]