San Antonio's minor league baseball team scores new owners, including Texas sports legends

A hometown home run

San Antonio's very own minor league baseball team is back to being locally owned. Designated Bidders LLC has purchased the San Antonio Missions from longtime franchise owner David Elmore of the Elmore Group.

Designated Bidders LLC consists of a group of of San Antonio business executives, with notable members including David Robinson, Manu Ginobili, and Henry Cisneros, among others. Ryan Sanders Baseball, an organization founded by MLB Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan, Reid Ryan (who is Ryan Sanders Baseball CEO), and Don Sanders will also join Designated Bidders as owners/operators of the San Antonio Missions, according to a press release.

Ryan Sanders Baseball has 25 years of experience in the sports industry at the minor and major league levels in baseball. "Our team's dedication to excellence and the fan experience is in great alignment with the Designated Bidders group of investors, their vision and energy. This partnership will ensure the future of professional baseball in San Antonio for generations to come and we couldn't be happier to be on board for the journey," said Reid Ryan in a statement.

Designated Bidders founders Bruce Hill, Randy Smith, Bob Cohen, Peter J. Holt, and Graham Weston all come to the table with a strong track record of investing in past projects with great returns. The San Antonio Spurs, for example, won five championships during Holt's tenure as chairman of Spurs Sports & Entertainment, while Weston's development firm, Weston Urban, has also helped with the development of iconic San Antonio landmarks like Legacy Park and 300 Main.

In other words, the San Antonio Missions are in capable hands moving forward.

The release also notes that the new owners of the San Antonio Missions are well aware that Nelson Wolff Stadium must be renovated in order to meet the MLB's standards for professional development league stadiums. Randy Smith, CEO and co-founder of Weston Urban, has high hopes for the future of Nelson Wolff Stadium.

"We believe our city needs a vibrant stadium where pedestrian-friendly business, recreation, public spaces, art and culture attract the talent of today and tomorrow," Smith said in the release. "An approachable, family-friendly venue is a key component of continuing to build the city our kids will call home."

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7 San Antonio icons star in new Texas Monthly book documenting most influential Texans of last 50 years

LONE STARS RISING

Texas Monthly's editors have released the next book for reading list queues. To commemorate the publication's 50th anniversary, they've collected and bound the stories and photographs of 50 iconic Texans that have shaped our great state and the country over the past 50 years. And seven San Antonio megastars have made it on the roster.

Lone Stars Risingis Texas Monthly's third book, created in collaboration with Harper Wave Books. Among the book's 256 pages are not just the rich histories and commentaries about our most recognizable Texas legends, but a few "lesser-known individuals who have been toiling on the sidelines, quietly and intentionally shaping" our perception of our vast and great state.

The seven Alamo City idols that made it into the book include business magnates, legendary musicians, inspirational activists and artists.

Selena Quintanilla, the Queen of Tejano who opened her second boutique in San Antonio
George Strait, the King of Country
Charles Butt, CEO, Chairman, and heir of H-E-B
Sandra Cisneros, nationally-recognized author and founder of San Antonio's Macondo Foundation and the Alfredo Cisneros del Moral Foundation
Willie Velásquez, social activist who founded the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project
Gloria Anzaldúa, author, poet, scholar, and feminist
Robert Rodriguez, the filmmaker behind the Spy Kids and Machete movies

Selena Facebook

Selena Quintanilla leads the list of San Antonio icons.

Lone Stars Rising will be available for purchase on June 6. More information about the book can be found on texasmonthly.com.

UT Austin's Texas Exes awards 5 fastest growing, Longhorn-run businesses in San Antonio

WE LOVE LOCAL BIZ

Maybe it's not as much of a surprise given how big our city is, but did you know several of San Antonio's local businesses are run by University of Texas at Austin grads? Now, five of Alamo City's fastest growing, Longhorn-run businesses are receiving the recognition they deserve by their alma mater.

UT Austin's alumni association, the Texas Exes, celebrated 100 nationwide companies who were founded, owned, or led by Longhorns over the past five years with the inaugural Longhorn 100 Gala on May 18. Award recipients must have held a minimum annual revenue of $250,000 since 2019 to qualify, in addition to their Longhorn status.

The San Antonio winners include popular restaurants, clinics, a construction and architecture firm, a community organization, and more:

Stagg Restaurants Dba McDonald's
San Antonio Cosmetic Surgery, PA
BIRD Bakery
OfficeSource, Ltd
Day 1 Bags (Boerne)

Elsewhere around the state, Austin-area businesses (of course) took home the most awards, totaling 43. Hill Country Dental Associates in Kerrville and McAllen's Castle Hospitality also took home Longhorn 100 Awards. In Houston, 13 businesses were also celebrated.

The full list of Longhorn 100 winners from around the state can be found on texasexes.org.

Whataburger weighs in as healthiest cheeseburger in the nation

THEMS EATIN' WORDS

With its love of greasy enchiladas, gluttonous fried steaks, and fat-speckled brisket, San Antonio isn’t exactly known as a healthy eating mecca. But it turns out that one locally beloved dish isn’t as unhealthy as one might think.

Inspired by February’s American Heart Month (albeit belatedly), Gambling.com decided to dig deep into which fast-food burger was best for the ticker and the body overall. What that has to do with online slots is anyone’s guess, but perhaps open-heart surgeries are not conducive to risk-taking.

Surprise, surprise, surprise! Local favorite/ food cult Whataburger took the top slot, earning honors with its standby cheeseburger. Assumably, the gambling site considered the mustard-slathered original, eschewing calorie bombs like bacon slices and creamy pepper sauce. Where’s the fun of Whataburger if you can’t get it just like you like it?

To arrive at the rankings, Gambling.com analyzed each burger for sugar, fat, salt, and calorie content per ounce. Each metric was given a one to ten score that factored into the final report card shared with content-hungry food journalists everywhere.

Coming in a close second was In-N-Out’s cheeseburger, a comforting fact for Texans who enjoy complaining about Californians. Rounding out the top five were Checker’s Checkerburger with Cheese, Culver’s ButterBurger Cheese, and Del Taco’s del Cheese Burger.

For those trying to make better eating choices, that list should give some pause. Yes, Whataburger beats out other fast-food faves, but it was competing against a chain that literally toasts all their buns in churned cream. Health is a relative concept.

Elsewhere on the list was another Texas darling, the No. 6 ranked Dairy Queen. Apparently, all that “hungr” is being busted by a hefty dose of sodium. Yes, we will take fries with that.

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