The Padres on Friday announced minority owner Eric Kutsenda as its new chairman and interim control person, succeeding long-time friend and business partner Peter Seidler. The move was first reported Thursday at the conclusion of Major League Baseball’s owners meeting in Arlington, Texas, as the organization begins to chart a path forward following Seidler’s death on Tuesday.
“With a heavy heart, I humbly accept this appointment in honor of my dear friend, Peter Seidler, who I had the privilege of working with for almost 30 years,” Kutsenda said in a team release. “I am excited to partner with Erik Greupner and A.J. Preller to help guide the Padres forward in fulfillment of Peter’s vision. That vision includes the Padres remaining as a family asset for generations to come and is anchored in Peter’s dedication to the fans and community of San Diego. Our north star remains the same: to win a World Series Championship for the city of San Diego.”
MLB requires teams to designate one person who is accountable for the operation of the franchise. Ron Fowler served in that role as the executive chairman after the current ownership group purchased the team in 2012 and Seidler took over that role in November 2020.
A certified public accountant, Kutsenda, 51, holds degrees from the University of Illinois an DePaul University. He founded Seidler Equity Partners in 1992 along side brothers Peter and Robert Seidler and joined the Padres’ front office late in the 2023 season as a special adviser to Greupner, the team’s CEO. Kutsenda represented Peter Seidler’s interests in operational decisions — including hiring a replacement for manager Bob Melvin.
That search was paused early this week following Seidler’s death, but a hiring is expected to come before next week’s Thanksgiving holiday.
The baseball calendar will pick up quickly after that with winter meetings in early December, when the Padres’ actions should begin to shed light on how they plan to cut some $50 million off last year’s $250-plus million payroll.
Under Seidler’s vision, the Padres morphed from a small-market afterthought to one that finished 2023 with the third-highest payroll. Among the expenditures are nine-figure deals handed out to Manny Machado ($350 million), Fernando Tatis Jr. ($340M), Xander Bogaerts ($280M) Yu Darvish($108M) and Joe Musgrove ($100M), all signed since Seidler became the control person.
