Baseball’s San Francisco Giants are selling a 10% ownership stake to a private equity firm — joining a growing trend in American sports. The firm in question is San Francisco-based Sixth Street. All major sports leagues in the U.S. now allow those firms to invest in their teams, according to the New York Times.
Historically, major sports teams in the U.S. have each been owned by one really rich person or family and the only way for them to cash in on their investment has been to sell the whole team.
But as the value of sports teams has risen, owners have realized that selling off part of their stake in a team “is a way for existing owners to capitalize on the rising valuations of their clubs,” said Tim Koba, an assistant professor in sport, event and hospitality management at High Point University.
Right now, private equity firms are willing buyers.
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“Essentially, they’re buying into people’s passions,” said Stefan Szymanski, a professor of sports management at the University of Michigan.
Because fans are so passionate about their teams, they’re willing to sink a lot of money into watching and supporting them.
And private equity, Szymanski noted, sees a revenue opportunity. “What they’re trying to do is trying ways to extract more of the financial value of that happiness from the fans.”
By raising ticket prices, he said, or finding new ways to reach — and charge — fans through digital channels.
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Advocates, buoyed by the success of car-free JFK and car-free Great Highway, have formed a new group called “Friends of Sunset Boulevard Park.” The group hopes to turn yet another car thoroughfare into community space. From their AI-generated statement:
Imagine Sunset Boulevard in San Francisco transformed into a lush, car-free park—a green oasis stretching from Lake Merced to Golden Gate Park. Instead of speeding cars, you’d have wide pedestrian and bike paths lined with native trees and gardens. Joggers, families, and cyclists could enjoy the space without traffic noise, and new picnic areas and play zones could pop up along the way.
The wide medians could be turned into community gardens, art installations, or even small wetlands to support local wildlife. Seasonal events like farmers’ markets, outdoor concerts, or yoga sessions could bring the community together. And with the ocean breeze rolling in, it would be a perfect escape within the city.
The newly formed organization, headed up by Sunset District resident Lucas Luthor, added that they figure since San Francisco’s MAGA contingent are still protesting Great Highway Park, advocates may as well turn Sunset into a park too. “I mean, Sunset is less than a mile from Great Highway Park and parallels it, but these drivers can’t seem to find it anyway, so obviously it’s not much use as a highway,” quipped Luthor.
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Sunset Blvd., currently. Why not make this a park? Image: Google maps
“I mean, we’re on a roll, right? We may as well make it into a park too,” he added.
Meanwhile, Streetsblog asked the group currently working to recall Supervisor Joel Engardio over Prop. K, the voter-approved measure to turn Great Highway into a park, why they don’t drive on Sunset Boulevard. Their response was “what’s that?” Separately, they announced that they have started another recall campaign. This time, they intend to recall everyone. Streetsblog asked if “everyone” meant other supervisors for the west side, state lawmakers, the governor, or if that included private citizens.
They sent the following response:
Luthor and his group, meanwhile, said after Sunset Boulevard they will look at turning 19th Avenue into a park.
“We’re moving east, street by street,” he added. “Everything will be a park,” he said, before laughing maniacally.
Apparently, AI can’t spell.
SFMTA, meanwhile, has started a traffic study on converting Sunset Boulevard into a park. They expect to have a presentation ready sometime before the sun inflates into a red giant and consumes the earth, after which they will set dates for public comment.
BOTTOM LINE: The San Francisco Giants play the Houston Astros leading the series 1-0.
Houston went 88-73 overall and 46-35 at home a season ago. The Astros scored 4.6 runs per game while allowing four in the 2024 season.
San Francisco had an 80-82 record overall and a 38-43 record in road games last season. The Giants averaged eight hits per game last season and totaled 177 home runs.
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INJURIES: Astros: Shawn Dubin: 15-Day IL (shoulder), Forrest Whitley: 15-Day IL (knee), J.P. France: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Luis Garcia: 15-Day IL (elbow), Cristian Javier: 15-Day IL (elbow), Taylor Trammell: 10-Day IL (calf), Kaleb Ort: 15-Day IL (oblique), Pedro Leon: 10-Day IL (knee), Lance McCullers Jr.: 15-Day IL (forearm)
Giants: Tom Murphy: 60-Day IL (back), Jerar Encarnacion: 10-Day IL (finger)
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
Lawsuits aren’t the only challenge to the city’s budget. Monday’s report assumes the city will receive a smaller than expected reimbursement from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, at least in the short term, as the federal government and San Francisco haggle over repayments for COVID-era help to the homeless.
