
David P. Samson
YouTube: @NPDS
Twitter: @DavidPSamson
TikTok: @NothingPersonal.NPDS
Instagram: @NothingPersonal.NPDS
Spotify: David P Samson Podcast
Apple Podcasts: David P Samson Podcast
David Samson debuted his show Nothing Personal with David Samson in 2019. The daily 45-minute audio/video podcast with its own YouTube Channel, gives its audience a unique look inside the world of sports, business and entertainment. Samson’s ability to decode everyday situations and statements made by owners, management and players, along with his unfiltered opinions on all subjects and trending stories, has enabled NPDS to fill a void in the sports media landscape.
Samson brought his flagship program NPDS under the Meadowlark Media umbrella in March 2023. Samson appears weekly on the Dan Le Batard Show. He also is the co-host with Meadowlark CEO and former ESPN President, John Skipper, of a Sports Business Show, The Sporting Class.
Samson continues to serve as an MLB analyst for CBS Sports HQ and CBS Sports Network since 2018. The 24-hour network provides live sports-anchored programming, expert analysis and insights.
Samson spent 18 seasons in Major League Baseball and 16 as President of the Miami Marlins. In 2017, he was the second-longest tenured team President in MLB and was one of only seven current Presidents to have presided over a World Series champion. He was a member of Major League Baseball’s Competition Committee and the Diversity & Inclusion Committee.
As Club President, Samson oversaw all aspects of the team’s day-to-day operations, including baseball, sales, marketing, Marlins Foundation and personnel matters. He also oversaw the successful completion of Marlins Park in Miami. Construction of the retractable roof, air-conditioned facility exceeded all stated goals from local worker participation to local firm involvement. Under Samson’s leadership, Marlins Park was completed on time and under budget while also earning Gold LEED certification, officially making it the greenest ballpark in America and the world’s first-ever retractable roof facility to earn such distinction.
Samson, 55, was born in Milwaukee, WI, and was raised in New York City. He graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1990 with a Bachelor of Arts, majoring in Economics. He received a Juris Doctor in 1993 from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law in New York City. He is a member of the New York State Bar. Following law school, Samson became President and Founder of News Travels Fast, the first company to deliver the New York Times to Europe on a same-day basis. In 1996, Samson joined Morgan Stanley, an investment bank in New York City, a position he resigned in 1999 when he joined the Montreal Expos as Executive Vice President.
Among his accomplishments, Samson was named one of Sports Business Journal’s “Forty Under 40” for two years running, 2003-04. Other highlights, in addition to the 2003 World Series Championship, included the Florida Marlins being named South Florida’s No. 1 Film and Entertainment Company of the Year and Baseball America’s Organization of the Year.
In 2015, Samson worked with Miami-Dade County, City of Miami and City of Miami Beach officials, as well as civic and business leaders to bid for the 2017 MLB All-Star Game. On February 13, 2015, Commissioner of Baseball, Robert D. Manfred, Jr. awarded the 2017 Midsummer Classic to Miami. In 2017, Marlins Park became the first MLB venue to host both the World Baseball Classic and the All-Star Game in the same year.
In 2017, Samson completed the negotiation to sell the Miami Marlins to a group led by Bruce Sherman and Derek Jeter for $1.2B. Samson acted as Chief Negotiator in the process. This competitive bid process was completed in under one year, and even with the very public nature of the transaction, Samson was able to deliver the second-highest revenue multiple in Major League Baseball history.
In 2010, David was named to Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law’s Board of Overseers, and from 2014-2018, he was Chairman of the Board. As a member of this board, he worked to continue Cardozo’s renowned clinical programs, as well as the continued growth of its public interest scholarship programs.
On October 21, 2006, Samson became the first active Major Team President to complete the Ford Ironman World Championship Triathlon in Kona, Hawaii. In addition to swimming 2.4 miles, biking 112 miles, and then running a full marathon, all in 15 hours, 36 minutes, he personally raised over $250,000 for the Marlins Foundation, the Challenged Athletes Foundation (“CAF”) and other local Hawaiian charities.
On April 27, 2012, Samson ran 52.5 miles from Pompano Beach to Marlins Park to raise funds for 10 “Charities of Choice” to honor the construction workers who made Marlins Park a reality. The run raised over $600,000 through sponsor and individual donations.
In 2014, Samson was one of 18 contestants on the 28th season of Survivor ™. He is the only active team executive to appear on the show, and one of fewer than 700 people in the United States to be selected to participate. Samson also starred as Lorne Michaels in the 2014 production, “Not Ready for Primetime.” This full-length feature play detailed the beginnings of “Saturday Night Live.”
From January 30-February 5, 2018, Samson completed the World Marathon Challenge, running 7 marathons on 7 continents in 7 consecutive days, joining the Intercontinental Marathon Club. He became one of the first 100 people to have done this in the world while raising $1.2M for charity as part of this endeavor.