Kevin McClatchy

Kevin S. McClatchy (born January 13, 1963) is the chairman of The McClatchy Company and former owner of the Pittsburgh Pirates baseball team. He led a group of investors that purchased the team in 1996, and served as the team's CEO and lead owner until 2007, when Bob Nutting took over as lead owner, and McClatchy and Nutting hired Frank Coonelly to become CEO.

Early life

McClatchy was born in Sacramento, California. Prior to purchasing the Pirates, he owned the minor-league Modesto A's. In addition to his baseball work, he is a director of The McClatchy Company, a newspaper publisher owned by his family (he succeeded Gary B. Pruitt as chairman of the board of the company in April 2012). McClatchy is an alumnus of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity.

Kevin is an alumnus of the Trinity-Pawling School in Pawling, New York.

Time with Pirates

McClatchy was the leader and plurality investor in a group that paid $95 million ($149 million today) for the Pittsburgh Pirates in February 1996. McClatchy immediately assumed the posts of chief executive officer and managing general partner, which are the offices traditionally staffed directly by owners in Major League Baseball.

McClatchy is a member of Major League Baseball's executive council and the labor and international committees. At some point after 2005, which is not entirely known because the Pirates are a private corporation, G. Ogden Nutting and his family became the plurality and then majority owners in the franchise. Bob Nutting, Ogden's son, is now chairman of the board. The Nuttings, however, have consistently shied from the spotlight and allowed McClatchy to be the main or even sole voice of the ownership group.

In 2006, McClatchy speculated openly about resigning, possibly even selling the team, if the Pirates did not improve. He affirmed that he was frustrated with his own team, referencing popular and political complaints about the "promise" he made that the publicly funded PNC Park would provide the owners will all the resources they needed to field a winning team. On October 4, 2006, however, McClatchy announced that despite another losing season, he would remain in his offices, and made only a few minor personnel changes. On January 12, 2007, the Pirates announced that Robert Nutting would replace McClatchy as the Pirates principal owner. During McClatchy's reign as owner, the Pirates never achieved a winning season.

On July 6, 2007, it was announced that McClatchy would step down as CEO after the 2007 MLB season. On September 8, 2007, Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports reported that baseball executive Frank Coonelly will be hired by the Pirates to replace McClatchy as CEO. This report comes just one day after the Pirates fired General Manager Dave Littlefield. The hiring of Coonelly was announced September 13.

Personal life

On September 22, 2012, McClatchy came out as gay in an interview with Frank Bruni of The New York Times.

As of 2013, McClatchy continues to live in the Pittsburgh suburb of Ligonier, Pennsylvania.