Los Angeles Dodgers controlling owner Mark Walter made headlines Wednesday afternoon when it was reported that the Buss family was entering an agreement to sell majority ownership of the Los Angeles Lakers to Walter.
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The reported $10 billion sale is the largest of a professional sports franchise in the world. The news sent shockwaves across the sports world, including among Dodgers players.
“It was more of a shock like, ‘Holy (expletive)!’ We know you were rich, but you’re that rich, kind of thing,” Kiké Hernandez said to The Orange County Register’s Bill Plunkett. “I mean, it’s amazing. Great day for Mark. Great day for the Lakers.”
The monumental move signaled the Lakers could emulate something similar to the Dodgers, who are in the midst of a golden era of baseball under Walter.
Walter bought the Dodgers in 2012 and have reached the postseason every year since. They also have 11 National League West titles, made four World Series appearances and earned two World Series wins.
Mark Walter bought the Dodgers in 2012. Since 2013, the Dodgers have:
12/12 postseason appearances
11 NL West titles
4 World Series appearances
2 World Series wins
They are a premier free agent destination and have become Japan's team.
The Lakers could not be in better hands. pic.twitter.com/fLzgFKXj8D
— Noah Camras (@noahcamras) June 18, 2025
“I feel like (the Lakers) are already positioned in a good spot, position-wise with the way that their roster has the ability to be constructed and all,” Hernandez said. “But to have a guy that owns a team now that you know he cares about the players, cares about winning, and is going to go above and beyond to make sure that the players have everything they need to be able to succeed on the court, it’s going to be impactful.”
Walter has been a minority stakeholder in the Lakers since 2021, but will now be the majority owner of L.A.’s biggest sports franchises.
“I think it’s cool to realize that when they are asked ‘Who are your employees?’ they are able to say Shohei Ohtani, LeBron James and Luka Doncic,” Hernandez said.
The parallels between the Lakers and Dodgers have only increased with Walter’s majority stake of the NBA franchise. The city of Los Angeles could have two championship teams very soon.
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Photo Credit: Jonathan Hui-Imagn Images
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