Peter Victor Ueberroth (born September 2, 1937 in Evanston, Illinois) is an American sports executive.

Ueberroth was a successful travel agent before becoming the organizer of the 1984 Summer Olympics held in Los Angeles, California. He was a prominent figure in the games and was named Time magazine's Man of the Year in 1984. Coincidentally, he was born on the day on which the founder of the modern Olympic Games, Baron Pierre de Coubertin, died.

He served as commissioner of Major League Baseball from 1984 to 1989. Ueberroth was elected to succeed Bowie Kuhn in March of 1984 and took office in October of that year. During his stint as commissioner, Ueberroth reinstated Hall of Famers Willie Mays & Mickey Mantle, who had been banned from working for Major League Baseball by Kuhn because of their associations with gambling casinos, facilitated collusion, suspended numerous players because of cocaine use, negotiated a $1.1 billion television contract with CBS, and initiated the investigation against Pete Rose.

Before the start of the 1989 regular season, Ueberroth stepped down as commissioner even though his term wasn't scheduled to end until October of that year. Three years after leaving office, he led the Rebuild Los Angeles project after the 1992 Los Angeles riots.

Ueberroth (front right) watches President Ronald Reagan throw the first pitch prior to a game

Ueberroth ran for Governor of California in the 2003 California recall election as an independent, though he was a registered Republican. His campaign focused on California's economic and budget crisis, avoiding social issues. With polls indicating only a low level of support, he pulled out of the race on September 9, 2003, though his name still appeared on the ballot and received a small but significant amount of votes. He placed 6th in a field of 135 candidates.

Further Reading

New York Magazine, "Hardball: Nancy Collins Quizzes Baseball Commissioner Peter Ueberroth", June 9, 1986, pp. 52-57+61.