Padres Reportedly Needed a Cash Loan in September Amid Payroll Issues

Another tough report out of San Diego.

In a bombshell report on Wednesday, sources revealed to The Athletic that the San Diego Padres took out a $50 million loan in September to "address short-term cash flow issues and meet their obligations." Those obligations included player payroll, according to The Athletic.

Quickly, the team challenged the claims in a statement from CEO Erik Greupner.

“The Padres organization continues to have access to all the resources, financial and otherwise, it needs to field a championship caliber team for the fans of San Diego. We established a capital plan for 2023 with our ownership group and lender partners and are operating our business in accordance with that plan.”

Via The Athletic

The need comes despite a successful season in terms of ticket sales at Petco Park. The big hit for the organization came early in the season as the television broadcast partner, Bally Sports and its parent company Diamond Sports, filed for bankruptcy in March. That proved to be a massive financial hit that came just weeks after the club committed millions in salary to Xander Bogaerts, Yu Darvish, and Manny Machado, among others.

Rumors surfaced toward the end of the season that the front office would be directed to trim payroll this winter, likely looking to cut $50 million at minimum from the $250 million payroll we saw in 2023.

The Padres maintain that this loan is nothing to be worried about and that cash flow is not a concern for the club or owner Peter Seidler. One anonymous source told The Athletic, “We’re not in crisis. We’re managing the business responsibly, we will continue to do that going forward.”

But the track record from the team this year has been suspect at best.