Padres' A.J. Preller Had Unusual Deadline Strategy: 'Drives Everyone Nuts!'
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We had an incredibly memorable Major League Baseball trade deadline this season, and A.J. Preller was predictably at the center of it all.
Preller, the San Diego Padres' president of baseball operations and general manager, went for broke as he so often does. He made five trades on deadline day, involving 22 total players, and that included arguably the signature move of the deadline.
In moving Leo De Vries, MLB Pipeline's No. 3 prospect in the entire sport, for former Athletics closer Mason Miller, Preller cut bait with the highest-ranked prospect to be traded in at least 20 years, according to MLB.com's Mark Feinsand.
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 28: President of Baseball Operations and General Manager A.J. Preller of the San Diego Padres speaks to media prior to an Opening Day game against the San Francisco Giants at...
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 28: President of Baseball Operations and General Manager A.J. Preller of the San Diego Padres speaks to media prior to an Opening Day game against the San Francisco Giants at PETCO Park on March 28, 2024 in San Diego, California. MoreMiller is under team control through the 2029 season, and the prevailing thought is that starting next season, the Padres could attempt to convert the fireballer, who regularly touches 103 miles per hour, back into a starting pitcher.
But Feinsand's report alleges that Preller didn't necessarily draw a bead on Miller at the deadline. He was apparently shopping De Vries, the 18-year-old shortstop, to multiple teams with big-league stars in hopes of reeling in the biggest fish.
"Preller drives everyone nuts!" an AL executive said, per Feinsand. "He basically kept multiple teams on the hook as he shopped De Vries. He was a buyer, but kind of operated like a seller in terms of auctioning off De Vries to the highest bidder."
In addition to Miller (and JP Sears, the left-handed pitcher from the Athletics trade who the Padres have optioned to Triple-A), Preller brought in outfielder Ramon Laureano, first baseman/designated hitter Ryan O'Hearn, left-handed pitcher Nestor Cortes, and catcher Freddy Fermin.
It was a stunning haul, and the Padres gave up a metric ton of prospect capital in the process. But if they win the World Series this year, Preller will be entirely justified in driving his front office counterparts nuts.
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