At what point do the failures of the Padres fall on A.J. Preller’s shoulders?
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This is the best time in the history of the San Diego Padres.
That must not be forgotten.
In the 50-plus years of existence of the franchise, there has been very little to celebrate. The infrequent joyous moments have traditionally been few and far apart. The 1984 and 1998 seasons, in which the Padres made it all the way to the World Series, were sudden and provided no long-lasting celebration for the fans of the team.
The current era is surreal if you are a Padres fan over 35.
Year after year, talented players were traded once they were deemed too expensive by management. And free agency? That was just an off-season occurrence that other teams participated in every year. The Padres never got involved in high-profile free agents of relevancy. Bruce Hurst, Mike Piazza, Greg Maddux, James Shields, and the rumors of Danny Tartabull signing in San Diego are the only memories that come to mind as far as decent players.
Fast-forward to now, and the Padres possess one of the most prolific lineups in all of baseball. Fernando Tatis Jr., Manny Machado, Xander Bogaerts, and Jake Cronenworth will make over a billion dollars combined when their deals end after the 2033 and 2034 seasons. Machado and Bogaerts were both plucked from the free agent market and awarded deals over $300 million each. In fact, when Machado signed with the Padres, his deal was the richest in the history of North American sports. That has since been eclipsed, but it gives you an idea of the dedication the Padres’ owners are showing toward winning.
It is 2023, and A.J. Preller built one of baseball’s most prized rosters.
The Padres are supposed to win now.
Unfortunately, star-studded rosters do not guarantee success in the game of baseball. The Padres are falling flat on their faces, and the failures of this team do not look like they will end any time soon. The fans are in a panic, and rightfully so, as the Padres are not enjoyable to watch right now. Witnessing this team finding new ways to lose close ball games is maddening.
The 2023 Padres have not won more than three games in a row all season. We are almost halfway through the year, and the team is almost guaranteed to finish that milestone under the .500 mark in the standings.
So, who is to blame for the failures of this current team?
A.J. Preller is at the point where he must succeed. The Padres have gone through three different managers in his tenure. Bob Melvin was brought in after two inexperienced men. Melvin has a great reputation, and the failures of this team cannot be blamed exclusively on him. Or at least that is what most believe.
The players obviously are not playing well as a team, and that is a major issue. Roster construction comes down to Preller, but he has put together a team that should be more consistent than what they are currently showing. The results of a game come down to the performance of the payers, but baseball is a team sport, and individuality means little to nothing.
The Padres are toiling right now. There is still time for the team to rattle off a winning streak and get back into playoff position. But the clock is ticking.
A.J. Preller has to be feeling the pressure. The team’s failures are his responsibilities, whether you like it or not.
The Padres must improve for the young G.M. to save his job in San Diego.
James was born and raised in America’s Finest City. He is a passionate baseball fan with even more passion towards his hometown Padres. Editor-In-Chief of EastVillageTimes.com. Always striving to bring you the highest quality in San Diego Sports News. Original content, with original ideas, that’s our motto. Enjoy.
Hi, is not looking good for nobody as much we don’t want to admit and I’m one of them the manager lost this team can’t get them to play together as a team has to be a change, and as usually he will do better in another team
Trade Juan Soto , get something in return , this little experiment didn’t work. James wood is now a top 10 prospect. And Gore is looking like a solid starter.
When? Starting in the 2014-2015 off season. This was soon after he was hired, and when he first started making moves. The trade for Kemp?! Beyond horrific, and in a multitude of ways. And then it got worse.
He then traded a future Hall of Fame shortstop … for a net negative in Wil Myers. And he did so at a time when they were perpetually in need of a shortstop, and a lead off hitter. Turner was excellent at both. Yet Preller traded him. And then it got worse…..
Preller is like the spoiled child of a multi-billionaire. He is given billions of dollars, and he wastes billions of dollars, yet other inexplicably excuse and defend him by pointing to the millions of dollars that remain.
And people keep saying, “Just wait. All of these moves are going to pay off.” And here we are, with a sucky, completely uninspired team that underperforms every chance they get.
Starting with the $83 million dollar Myers contract Preller has been out of control with these huge (mostly overpaid and undeserved Croenworth/Darvish/Musgrove. etc.) contract extensions.. before anyone is critical of my opinion I feel that all of the Players mentioned are either good/very good or even great at times but not worthy of the Contract extensions Preller foolishly put in front of them. Darvish is now signed into his 40’s/Musgrove a hometown hero basically because of his no hitter but is a solid pitcher not a great one/Croenworth may be struggling under the weight of his extension and then we have quite possibly Machado not being quite the Leader of the Locker room that many Padres Fans hoped for.. Manny seems to resent any criticism directed at him even though he is without a doubt having a mediocre season by his standards.. it appears that Preller got carried away with most of the contract extensions and in my opinion the Clubhouse atmosphere isn’t as cohesive as they want the Padres Fans to believe.. it’s nearly the All Star break… If the Padres don’t turn things around and not only make the Playoffs but go deep into the 2023 MLB playoffs it will be an embarrassment for the Padres Owners that will be looking directly at Preller for answers.. I don’t see Preller holding on to his job without a deep playoff run even with his own Contract extension in place. Bottom line..
A poorly contructed lineup of either past their prime/average players given tons of money= monumental disappointment.
At what point? Now. He’s a miserable failure and knows nothing about roster construction. It’s not on Melvin. It’s Boegarts hitting into double plays, Manny not really caring, Cronenworth popping up to 2nd base during one of terrible at bats. How many fastballs down the middle can Major League baseball players watch go by? Prellar has decimated the minors and nobody will take on any of these bloated contracts. The team is doomed for a decade now, and that’s all on Prellar.
doomed is a little harsh.