$28 million from Charles and Greg Johnson and partners will support renovation of sports complex

The owners of the San Francisco Giants are backing a $28 million plan to renovate Crocker Amazon Park, one of the city’s most heavily used sports complexes.

The proposed grant, through the Giants Community Fund and recently endorsed by park officials, would fund upgrades to the fields, lighting and facilities used by local youth and community leagues.

Behind that significant amount are three key players: principal owner Charles B. Johnson, his son and team chairman Greg Johnson, and longtime team president and CEO Larry Baer.

Charles Johnson is the billionaire whose money makes a $28-million gift possible.

Greg Johnson is the next‑generation leader who now officially represents the Giants in league matters. Larry Baer is the on‑the‑ground operator who turns big ideas and big checks into real projects that the city can see and use.

For years, Charles B. Johnson has gotten attention for his political donations, especially his large support for Republican causes.

Those contributions have often clashed with San Francisco’s liberal politics, creating public relations headaches for the team.

The Crocker Amazon project gives him a very different headline: not millions going to national campaigns, but 28 million dollars going to neighborhood ballfields and local kids.

Greg Johnson is the family member stepping into a more public leadership role. As the league‑recognized “control person,” he is the one shaping long‑term strategy and speaking about the franchise’s future.

A big, visible community investment like Crocker Amazon helps him show that the Giants are serious about being a positive force in the city, not just a business that runs a stadium on the waterfront.

For him, this is a way to align the team’s image with modern expectations that sports owners support youth sports, neighborhoods, and public spaces.

Larry Baer is the person who must make the deal work day-to-day. He has spent decades turning the Giants into a powerhouse in San Francisco, from helping to build Oracle Park to leading the Mission Rock development across the cove.

Now he is the one working with city officials, community groups, and planners to turn that 28 million dollars into new fields, better facilities, and a safer, more modern park.

His relationships at City Hall and in the business community are crucial to getting a project like this approved and built.

Put simply: Charles Johnson brings the money, Greg Johnson sets the direction, and Larry Baer makes it happen.

The $28 million plan at Crocker Amazon is where all three roles come together.

If the project goes forward as expected, families and kids in San Francisco will see the results up close in the form of better fields and improved public space.

And for the Giants’ ownership, it will be a powerful, easy‑to‑understand symbol of how they want to be seen in their city: not only as the people who own the team,but also as the people willing to invest big money into the community.

Photo: Greg Johnson