AJ Preller's previous deals might limit the Padres big time at trade deadline

The All-Star Game is now in the rearview mirror and the push for a spot in the postseason is on the line over the next couple of months. The San Diego Padres endured a difficult stretch over the last week before the Midsummer Classic and actually dropped out of the playoff picture before the All-Star break.

But Pads fans know that president of baseball operations AJ Preller has circled July 30 as a pivotal day for the San Diego organization. Unsurprisingly, the Padres rumors are heating up, and the Friars are expected to be major players ahead of the MLB trade deadline.

But it may be difficult for Padres' top executive to pull off some of those patented Preller-blockbuster deals. Why? Because Preller and Co. spent a good amount of prospect capital earlier this year acquiring the likes of Dylan Cease and Luis Arrárez.

Can AJ Preller and Padres compete with the major players at the MLB trade deadline?

Preller landed a major asset before the 2024 season even began. Though Cease was being sought by almost every GM in baseball, it was Preller and Padres who got a deal done. Looking back on the acquisition, it's a good thing Preller acted when he did. The Friars have lost their top two starters from a year ago, and it's scary to wonder where the Padres might have been without Cease.

The Padres also nabbed a two-time batting champion just over a month into the 2024 campaign. Arráez joined the Friars in May, and through 60 games is hitting .315/.340/.381. But did these two trades eliminate any chance of Preller and the Padres making a splash at the MLB trade deadline?

The short answer is, no. San Diego still has some top-level assets that other executives would love to have in their organizations. However, if Preller wants to pull off a mega-deal for a player like Garrett Crochet, it's going to cost the Friars big time. According to MLB Pipeline, the Padres have four top-100 prospects. Expect at least two of them to be included in a potential trade for Crochet. The problem is, there's a real chance any blockbuster deal wipes out the top level of the Padres' prospect pool.

Gone are trade chips like Samuel Zavala, Jairo Iriarte, Drew Thorpe, Jakob Marsee, Nathan Martorella, and Dillon Head. The amount of prospect capital Preller invested in order to land Cease and Arráez has depleted the Padres' resources and could very well put them out of the bidding for Crochet and other potential upgrades.

Did Preller jump too soon at the opportunity to upgrade the roster? That seems a little too harsh given how good those deals were. But his early-season deals with the Chicago White Sox and Miami Marlins may have limited his negotiating power at the MLB trade deadline.

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