Kwanza Jones just made Major League history—and San Diego and it looks good for San Diego.
Kwanza Jones is officially a principal owner of the San Diego Padres, becoming the first Black woman to serve as a principal owner of an MLB franchise.
And she isn’t doing it alone.
Alongside her husband, investor José E. Feliciano, Jones is helping lead the Padres’ new ownership group following a record-setting $3.9 billion valuation. MLB owners unanimously approved the transfer, with the transaction completed days later.
This is bigger than baseball.
It’s a powerful moment for San Diego, for Black women, for Black leadership, for representation—and for the country.
Because when people who have historically been left out of the ownership conversation move into the room, the impact reaches far beyond the boardroom. It changes what’s possible. It expands the vision of who can lead, who can build, who can invest, and who can own.
And Kwanza Jones has been building for a long time.
A Princeton graduate, former NCAA Division I athlete, investor, entrepreneur and CEO of the Kwanza Jones & José E. Feliciano Initiative, Jones has helped commit hundreds of millions of dollars to businesses and nonprofit organizations.
Now, she and José are bringing that same vision, ambition and commitment to one of San Diego’s most beloved institutions.
There is something especially powerful about this history being made here—right in our city.
San Diego has a new chapter to celebrate. Major League Baseball has a new chapter to acknowledge. And somewhere, a young Black& Brown girls are watching and realizing that ownership is not just something she can dream about.
It’s something she can do.
Congratulations, Kwanza Jones and José E. Feliciano! Welcome to Padres ownership—and thank you for making history in San Diego.
Let’s Go Padres!