George Leon Argyros (born February 4, 1937) is an American former diplomat who served as the United States Ambassador to Spain. He is also a real estate investor and philanthropist. Argyros was the owner of Major League Baseball's Seattle Mariners from 1981 to 1989. He is the founder and CEO of property firm Arnel & Affiliates. Early and personal life George Argyros was born on February 4, 1937, in Detroit, Michigan, but raised in Pasadena, California. Argyros is a second-generation American citizen; his grandparents emigrated from Greece. Argyros graduated from Chapman University in 1959 with a major in Business and Economics. He later served on Chapman University's board of trustees, including chairman of the board from 1976 to 2001. The Chapman University, Argyros School of Business and Economics is named in his honor. Argyros and his wife, Julia, have three grown children and seven grandchildren. His son George Argyros Jr. (b. 2/5/1965 - d. 8/28/2020) died of a heart attack at the age of 55 Business Argyros made his fortune in real estate investments. He originally started his business career running a grocery store and moved on to buying and selling real estate to gas stations. He also was involved in buying and selling property in Southern California. From 1981 to 1989, he was the owner of the Seattle Mariners baseball team. Argyros has done business through the real estate company Arnel & Affiliates (DBA "Arnel Property Management Company"). Arnel & Affiliates does business primarily in Southern California. Argyros has a net worth around $2 billion and owns around 5,500 apartments in Orange County and nearly 2 million square feet of commercial real estate in Southern California. Politics Argyros served as a member of the Advisory Committee for Trade Policy and Negotiations for the U.S. Trade Ambassador. He resigned from that position in 1990, when President Bush appointed him to the board of the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (FreddieMac). He completed his term on the FreddieMac Board in March 1993. In 2001 Argyros was appointed Ambassador to Spain and Andorra. He was sworn in on November 21, 2001. Many viewed the appointment as a political reward for his fund raising efforts for the Republican Party. Baseball In 1981, Argyros bought the Seattle Mariners. Argyros sold the team to Jeff Smulyan in 1989. Argyros had openly tried to purchase the San Diego Padres in 1987 and to sell the Mariners