Peter Magowan

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Peter A. Magowan is the managing general partner of the San Francisco Giants Major League Baseball franchise. Magowan, along with a group of investors, purchased the franchise on January 12, 1993 from the previous owner, Bob Lurie. Before Magowan's consortium stepped in with its offer to buy the team, Lurie had planned to sell the team to a group from St. Petersburg, now home to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. Magowan made his mark on the team immediately, signing free agent superstar Barry Bonds, a San Francisco Bay Area-native whose father began his career as a Giant.

Magowan is also noted for spearheading the construction of the Giants' current home, AT&T Park (previously SBC Park and Pacific Bell Park). Previously, several initiatives to build tax-supported stadiums had been rejected by San Francisco voters. Magowan and the Giants proposed building a privately funded ballpark - the first in the Major Leagues in decades - and despite some opposition, the plan was passed easily by the voters. Pacific Bell Park opened in 2000, replacing the oft-criticized Candlestick Park.

Prior to purchasing the Giants, Magowan served as Chairman and CEO of the Bay Area-based supermarket chain Safeway. He is also a Director of Caterpillar Inc., DaimlerChrysler AG, and Spring Group plc. Magowan has been a director of Caterpillar since 1993.

Peter Magowan's grandfather was Charles Merrill (1885-1956), co-founder of Merrill Lynch & Company and an early investor in Safeway. Magowan's father, Robert Anderson Magowan, was Chairman and CEO of Safeway; Magowan's mother, Doris Merrill Magowan (1914-2001), was a prominent San Francisco philanthropist. Magowan is the nephew of celebrated poet James Merrill (1926-1995). He was born in 1937.