New Charlotte Knights ownership group intends to keep squad running as ‘hyper-local’ biz

The Charlotte Knights’ new ownership group wants to keep the local vibe alive in Uptown.

Diamond Baseball Holdings announced the purchase agreement of the Charlotte-based Triple-A team on Tuesday in a deal with longtime owner, Don Beaver, who bought the team in 1997 and relocated the franchise from Fort Mill, S.C. in 2014.

Diamond Baseball Holdings CEO Peter Freund — who oversees the company’s 30-plus minor league squads — said Thursday at Truist Field that the new ownership group is taking over a “hyper-local business” that they want to keep locally run.

“This place is a local asset, it’s not a national asset,” Freund said. “It’s not going to be run out of New York — I saw some of the headlines about that — this is going to be run here. It’s going to be run, honestly, by (Knights COO Dan Rajkowski) and his team.”

Freund called the Knights and Truist Field “the jewel of the minor leagues,” but also acknowledged that the team and the ballpark would need further investment. Though Freund said that fans won’t see much change during the current campaign, the ownership group wants to build on top of the foundation created by Beaver and Rajkowski.

The company plans to do a full audit to figure out what needs to be improved regarding the entire Knights organization.

“Our investment doesn’t stop here,” Freund said. “We bought this to invest, and to do so with the county, with the city. We’ve had great success doing so. We are undergoing seven different construction projects right now. We’re building a new stadium in Spartanburg, South Carolina, we’re building a new stadium in Columbus, Georgia. We have renovation projects — almost all of them are public-private partnerships.

“We definitely will invest money here. We know that some of the assets here need replacing — whether it’s the video board out there or some of the seats — but we’re in this to invest and do the right thing.”

Freund said Diamond Baseball Holdings’ thesis for ownership revolves around setting a standard of best practices across their portfolio of clubs. The CEO said the company views minor league baseball as a “people business” that thrives when it works with other local businesses.

Prior to creating Diamond Baseball Holdings — which also owns fellow Chicago White Sox minor-league affiliates, Double-A Birmingham Barons and High-A Winston-Salem Dash — with his partner, Pat Battle, in 2021, Freund owned the Memphis Redbirds, Williamsport Crosscutters and Wilmington Sharks.

After acquiring teams in San Jose, Memphis, Oklahoma City and Vancouver under the Diamond Baseball Holdings banner, Freund understands the Knights’ place in a city that hosts major league squads like the Carolina Panthers, Charlotte FC and the Charlotte Hornets.

“I’ve always said we have a very unique offering in minor league baseball,” Freund said. “I never see us competing with major league teams or major sports. I mean I owned Memphis myself. We had the Grizzlies, and it’s great to have connectivity. It’s really important — it’s all one town.

“But we are competing at a different price point and will continue continue to compete at that price point. This needs to be an affordable experience that everyone can enjoy. So, the reality is, I just see it as an additional asset to us, and certainly not competition for us.”

Rajkowski, who helped oversee the sale of the Knights to Diamond Baseball Holdings, will remain in place as the team’s COO. Rajkowski, who worked for Beaver for 31 years, introduced Freund during his first press conference in Charlotte, and acknowledged his excitement for the change at the top.

“What I found, from top to bottom, with every organization that I talked to, was they come in, they let you do your job, they bring in innovative ideas, the organization itself adds value to what we do, and I see that as a real positive to us moving forward,” Rajkowski said. “We can always get better, and we want to get better.”

Freund said the traditional aspects of the team and ballpark will stay in place under Diamond Baseball Holdings’ ownership. If anything, the company will add to the events that fans have come to expect over the years.

“We see all of the stadiums that operate, and in this case, own, as community assets that should be activated 365 days a year,” Freund said. “So, actually, we can activate it even more.”

When asked about Major League Baseball potentially expanding to Charlotte and that outcome having an impact on the Knights as a business, Freund said he had no knowledge of any plans by the league for expansion or a move to Charlotte.

Rajkowski added: “Charlotte is a great Triple-A market.”

To which Freund responded, “It is,” with a smile.