SF Giants principal owner's net worth is 4th-highest in MLB

MLB Trade Rumors put together an interesting compilation of the net worth for all 30 principal (primary) owners in baseball. Not surprisingly, the SF Giants' principal owner ranks near the top.

SF Giants principal owner's net worth is 4th-highest in MLB

Forbes estimates that Giants principal owner Charles B. Johnson has a net worth of $5.8 billion. Only Steve Cohen ($15.9 billion, New York Mets), Edward Rogers III ($11.5 billion), and John Malone ($8 billion, Atlanta Braves) have generated a higher net worth than the mark set by Johnson.

Perhaps, the most surprising nugget from that group is that Johnson has a higher net worth than Mark Walter ($5 billion) of the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Johnson's father, Rupert Johnson, founded Franklin Templeton Investments in 1947. Charles B. Johnson became the CEO of the company in 1957 at the age 24. During his 56 years in charge, he oversaw a massive increase in the company's assets before stepping down in 2013.

The longtime businessman helped keep the Giants in San Francisco in 1992 as the team was up for sale. Then-owner Bob Lurie had an agreement to sell the team to an investment group that was motivated to move the Giants to Tampa Bay, Florida.

Peter Magowan, Larry Baer, and Johnson raised the funds to purchase the Giants from Lurie for $100 million, thus keeping the organization in San Francisco. It was a wild time to be a Giants fan as the first order of business after the sale was reeling in superstar outfielder Barry Bonds to a six year, $43 million deal.

Johnson is not actively involved in the day-to-day operations as he has yielded those responsibilities to Magowan, Baer and Bill Neukom over the years. During his time as principal owner, the Giants have experienced unprecedented levels of success that include the construction of Oracle Park as well as three World Series rings.

Not surprisingly, the team's value has ballooned since 1992 with the Giants ranking as the fifth-most valuable ($3.1 billion) franchise in baseball in 2020.

Despite his desire to remain out of the public eye, Johnson has come under scrutiny in recent years as his political contributions have gone to questionable sources. He has reached out to some of those campaigns to publicly request a refund, but it is a story that tends to get national attention every couple of years. Nevertheless, it is fair to say that Johnson is one rich person.