Marv Goldklang has been a leader and pioneer throughout professional baseball for over four decades, and has served as Executive Chairman and principal owner of the Charleston RiverDogs since his purchase of the franchise in 1989.
His accomplishments and accolades throughout the game are wide ranging. Marv’s involvement in professional baseball began when he became a minority owner of the New York Yankees in 1979. He served as Executive Chairman and principal owner of the St Paul Saints from 1993-2023, and is considered one of the fathers of modern era independent baseball as a founder of the Northern League in 1993. He has served as Executive Chairman and principal owner for over a half dozen affiliated teams, within every classification level of Minor League Baseball; as Executive Committee chair of two Minor Leagues; as a Board member of Minor League Baseball until its transition to Major League Baseball’s oversight; and, most recently, on their joint Business Affairs Committee.
In addition to his induction in the Charleston Baseball Hall of Fame, Marv also is an inductee of the South Atlantic League Hall of Fame (where the RiverDogs played prior to their joining the Carolina League); the Florida State League Hall of Fame, and the New York Penn League Hall of Fame. He is scheduled as well for induction into the American Association Baseball Hall of Fame later this summer.
Marv purchased the then Charleston Rainbows on September 22, 1989- a date well-known to lowcountry residents as the same day Hurricane Hugo made landfall, badly damaging the team’s home of College Park. During the ensuing years, Marv partnered with the City and Mayor Riley to plan, develop and construct what would turn out to be one of baseball’s most impressive facilities- Joseph P Riley ballpark, which opened in 1997. In the decades since, the RiverDogs have enhanced their multilevel commitment to the Charleston community as well as their standing as a leading sports, entertainment, and hospitality brand.
Marv’s teams have received countless awards for excellence in their presentation of the game of baseball, relying on several core principles- hire good people; provide them with a vision of the possibilities; build a team-oriented organizational culture; and, above all, honor and promote the game and its connection to the community.