Sam Kennedy | |
|---|---|
 Kennedy in 2019 | |
| Born | 1973 (age 50–51) |
| Alma mater | Trinity College (Connecticut) |
| Occupations |
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Samuel H. Kennedy (born 1973) is an American professional baseball executive who is the president and chief executive officer of the Boston Red Sox of Major League Baseball (MLB) [1] and CEO of Fenway Sports Group (FSG). [2]
The son of an Episcopal priest, Kennedy is a native of Brookline, Massachusetts. [3] He attended Brookline High School and was a classmate of Theo Epstein, later an executive with the Boston Red Sox and Chicago Cubs. At Brookline High School, Kennedy was captain of both the boys' hockey and baseball teams. [4] He then attended Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut, where he played baseball [5] and earned a bachelor's degree in 1995.
After an internship with the New York Yankees in 1995, [1] and a period in advertising sales with two major New York City radio stations, WABC and WFAN, Kennedy returned to baseball in 1996 with the San Diego Padres, where he worked under Larry Lucchino and was reunited with Epstein.
Kennedy began his San Diego career as an account executive, and had risen to executive director/corporate accounts and broadcasting when (along with Lucchino and, eventually, Epstein) he joined the Red Sox front office during the 2001–02 offseason upon the team's purchase by Fenway Sports Group (FSG). [4] He rose from vice president/sales and corporate partnerships to senior vice president/sales and marketing to executive vice president/chief marketing officer before becoming the Red Sox' chief operating officer.
Kennedy also worked to enlarge the footprint of parent company FSG. In 2004, working under chief operating officer Mike Dee, he was tasked with the creation of Fenway Sports Management (FSM), a sports marketing agency that operates under the aegis of the Fenway Sports Group, where he served as president following Dee's 2009 departure and subsequently as chief executive officer. In 2010, Kennedy was involved in FSG's purchase of the Premier League association football club Liverpool F.C., with FSM placed in charge of expanding the club's global "commercial operations." [4] Kennedy was considered for top-level positions in sports management outside Boston and baseball, including a possible higher-management role with Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment in Toronto, prior to the 2015 season. [6]
Kennedy was named the successor to longtime Red Sox president Lucchino on August 1, 2015, when Lucchino announced his decision to retire from his executive positions at the close of the team's 2015 season. [6] Lucchino's CEO post was initially left vacant, and on August 18, 2015, the Red Sox also named veteran MLB executive Dave Dombrowski to the new position of president, baseball operations. [7] [8] On August 2, 2017, the Red Sox and FSM announced Kennedy's appointment as CEO, and signed him to a new five-year contract as both CEO and president. [9] In March 2021, FSG announced that Kennedy had joined its ownership group and become a partner. [10] Three years later, Kennedy was promoted to FSG's chief executive post. [11]
Kennedy and his family reside in Wellesley, Massachusetts.
The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East Division. Founded in 1901 as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the team's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since 1912. The "Red Sox" name was chosen by the team owner, John I. Taylor, c. 1908, following the lead of previous teams that had been known as the "Boston Red Stockings", including the Boston Braves. The team has won nine World Series championships, tied for the third-most of any MLB team, and has played in 13 World Series. Their most recent World Series appearance and win was in 2018. In addition, they won the 1904 American League pennant, but were not able to defend their 1903 World Series championship when the New York Giants refused to participate in the 1904 World Series.
Fenway Park is a baseball stadium located in Boston, Massachusetts, less than one mile from Kenmore Square. Since 1912, it has been the ballpark of Major League Baseball’s Boston Red Sox. While the stadium was built in 1912, it was substantially rebuilt in 1934, and underwent major renovations and modifications in the 21st century. It is the oldest active ballpark in MLB. Because of its age and constrained location in Boston's dense Fenway–Kenmore neighborhood, the park has many quirky features, including "The Triangle", Pesky's Pole, and the Green Monster in left field. It is the fifth-smallest among MLB ballparks by seating capacity, second-smallest by total capacity, and one of eight that cannot accommodate at least 40,000 spectators.
Theo Nathaniel Epstein is an American Major League Baseball executive who is the senior adviser and part-owner of Fenway Sports Group, which owns the Boston Red Sox of Major League Baseball and Liverpool FC of the English Premier League, among other properties. Epstein was the vice president and general manager for the Red Sox and then the president of baseball operations for the Chicago Cubs, working for each team for nine seasons. Following his tenure in Chicago, he joined MLB as a consultant.
The Pawtucket Red Sox, known colloquially as the PawSox, were a professional minor league baseball club based in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. From 1973 to 2020, the team was a member of the International League and served as the Triple-A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox. They played their home games at McCoy Stadium, and won four league championships, their last in 2014. Following the 2020 season, the franchise moved to Worcester, Massachusetts, to become the Worcester Red Sox.
Lawrence Lucchino was an American lawyer and Major League Baseball executive. He served as president of the Baltimore Orioles, president and chief executive officer (CEO) of the San Diego Padres, and president and CEO of the Boston Red Sox. He was also chairman of the Worcester Red Sox, the Triple-A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox; chairman of The Jimmy Fund, the philanthropic arm of the Dana–Farber Cancer Institute; and president and CEO emeritus of Fenway Sports Group, the parent company of the Boston Red Sox and Liverpool F.C. Lucchino played college basketball for the Princeton Tigers.
John William Henry II is an American businessman and the founder of John W. Henry & Company, an investment management firm. He is the principal owner of Liverpool Football Club, the Boston Red Sox, the Pittsburgh Penguins, The Boston Globe, and co-owner of RFK Racing. As of August 2023, Forbes estimated his net worth to be US$4 billion.
Dan Shaughnessy is an American sports writer. He has covered the Boston Red Sox for The Boston Globe since 1981. In 2016, he was given the J. G. Taylor Spink Award by the Baseball Hall of Fame. Shaughnessy is often referred to by his nickname "Shank," given by the 1980s Boston Celtics team for the often unflattering and critical nature of his articles.
David Dombrowski is an American baseball executive who serves as the president of baseball operations for the Philadelphia Phillies of Major League Baseball (MLB). Dombrowski also previously served as the general manager of the Montreal Expos, the general manager and president of the Florida Marlins and Detroit Tigers, and president of baseball operations for the Boston Red Sox. He has helped build four different franchises into pennant-winning teams, and he has won the World Series twice — with the Marlins in 1997 and the Red Sox in 2018.
Thomas Charles Werner is an American television producer and businessman. Through his investment in Fenway Sports Group, he is currently chairman of both Liverpool Football Club and the Boston Red Sox.
Anthony Ezio Massarotti is an American author and a former sportswriter for the Boston Herald and The Boston Globe. He co-hosts a sports talk radio show, Felger & Mazz, on 98.5 The Sports Hub with former Boston Herald columnist Michael Felger. Massarotti has also served as a color commentator for the Boston Red Sox, during their 2022 season.
John Leo Harrington is an American retired business manager and former executive in Major League Baseball (MLB). He was president of the Boston Red Sox from 1987 through 2001, also acting as CEO during much of the time the Red Sox were owned by the JRY Trust (1992–2001).
Jed Hoyer is an American sports executive who is the president of baseball operations of the Chicago Cubs. He has been the general manager of the San Diego Padres and the assistant general manager of the Boston Red Sox.
Fenway Sports Management (FSM) is a global sports marketing firm that specializes in partnership sales, consulting, and the creation of unique and memorable events and experiences. FSM is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, with an office in New York City. Founded in 2004, it is a wholly owned subsidiary of Fenway Sports Group, the parent company of the Boston Red Sox and Liverpool Football Club, among other assets.
Benjamin P. Cherington is an American baseball executive serving as the general manager of the Pittsburgh Pirates of Major League Baseball (MLB) since November 2019. He previously served as the vice-president of baseball operations for the Toronto Blue Jays, and was the executive vice president and general manager of the Boston Red Sox from 2011 to 2015. He succeeded Theo Epstein in that position, having worked in the team's baseball operations office since 1999, before Epstein's arrival.
Fenway Sports Group Holdings, LLC (FSG), is an American multinational sports holding conglomerate which owns NASCAR's RFK Racing, Major League Baseball's Boston Red Sox, the Premier League’s Liverpool F.C., the National Hockey League's Pittsburgh Penguins, and the TMRW Golf League's Boston Common Golf.
Mike Dee is an American sports and media executive who is currently president of Sports for Audacy, Inc., the largest audio rights holder of professional teams and sports talk radio in the United States. He is the former chief executive officer of the San Diego Padres of Major League Baseball and the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League. Dee also served as the chief operating officer of the Boston Red Sox and as president of Fenway Sports Group. While with the Red Sox, the team won two World Series titles.
David L. Lucchino is co-founder and chief executive officer of Frequency Therapeutics, a biotechnology company based in Lexington, MA.
Chaim David Bloom is an American sports executive. He began his career in Major League Baseball in 2005 with the Tampa Bay Rays, reaching the title of Senior Vice President of Baseball Operations. Between 2020 and 2023, Bloom was Chief Baseball Officer for the Boston Red Sox. Following the 2023 season, Bloom joined the St. Louis Cardinals as an adviser to John Mozeliak.
Brian O'Halloran is an American sports executive with the Boston Red Sox of Major League Baseball (MLB). After serving as general manager of the team under Chaim Bloom during the 2020–2023 seasons, O'Halloran accepted a position as executive vice president of baseball operations following Bloom's dismissal in September 2023.
