Mark Lerner takes over as managing principal owner of Nationals

The Nationals have announced that Mark D. Lerner will take over as the managing principal owner of the club from his father, Theodore N. Lerner.

Mark Lerner has been one of the principal owners since the family purchased the Nationals in July 2006. Major League Baseball has formally approved him earlier today during the quarterly ownership meeting in New York City.

"Owning a baseball team in my hometown had long been a dream of mine," said Ted Lerner in a team-issued press release. "Twelve years ago, when Major League Baseball selected my family as the owners of the Washington Nationals, I could not have been happier. I always knew that someday my son, Mark, would take over my role as managing principal owner. That day has come. I look forward to watching him take the helm and help lead this team to a world championship."

Ted Lerner is 92 and has a net worth of $5.2 billion. Mark Lerner, who has been a fixture around the team during the Lerners' tenure as owners, battled cancer in his left leg last year. The leg had to be amputated, but he has recovered nicely and has been seen around the team on a regular basis again this season.

"Baseball has long been my passion," said Mark Lerner in a team-issued release. "Since being awarded the team in 2006, my family has taken great pride in our fans and this team. We have always strived for excellence both on and off the field. That will not change. Our family will continue to put our fans first and do everything possible to bring a World Series trophy to D.C. It is incredibly special for my mother and father to be able to see me take the helm. And it means so much to me that they chose to make this change now."

Mark Lerner also has two sisters, Debra Lerner Cohen and Marla Lerner Tanenbaum, who are a part of the principal ownership group, as well as Annette M. Lerner, Robert K. Tanenbaum, Edward L. Cohen, and Mark's wife, Judy Lenkin Lerner.