LOS ANGELES - Golfer Phil Mickelson confirmed Monday he has joined a group of investors seeking to buy the San Diego Padres, his hometown baseball team. Mickelson told the San Diego Union-Tribune that he had turned down previous opportunities to become involved in sports ownership, but found the Padres an appealing proposition. On Monday in Ohio, where he was preparing for this week’s US PGA Memorial tournament, the four-time Major champion confirmed he was involved with a group including Kevin and Brian O’Malley, and their cousins Peter and Tom Seidler, as one of several groups trying to buy the team. The O’Malleys and Seidlers are grandchildren of former Los Angeles Dodgers owner Walter O’Malley. The Padres’ majority owner John Moores is selling the team after his proposed sale to part-owner Jeff Moorad was not approved by Major League owners earlier this year. Moorad said in January he was ready to make an all-cash transaction to complete his purchase of a controlling interest, but baseball owners halted the sale, demanding clarification of the financial details.