San Diego Padres: 4 player moves A.J. Preller likely regrets

With the trade deadline approximately one month away, the San Diego Padres are expected to revamp their roster with several moves before August 1. The 2023 season has been a disaster as the Padres are mired in fourth place in the standings with a 37-43 record and no sign of change coming soon.

Padres general manager A.J. Preller has come under fire for the team’s poor play. His offseason free agent signings of Xander Bogaerts, Nelson Cruz and Matt Carpenter have all failed to produce at the plate. And reinforcements are not coming from the minor league system. Preller has pawned off the Friars' top prospects in trades that yielded little in return.

Here are four 4 San Diego Padres player moves that A.J. Preller regrets

Ty France traded to the Seattle Mariners

The Friars traded Ty France in a move that was supposed to gain them a hard-hitting catcher, Austin Nola, from the Seattle Mariners. Unfortunately, Nola has never lived up to the hype.

France was not considered a top prospect in the Padres minor league system, but he has proven to be a bonafide run producer in the majors. France is in the midst of another impressive offensive campaign. He is hitting for a decent average (.274) while having impressive on-base (.343) and slugging (.415) numbers. In 332 plate appearances, he has seven homers, scored 49 runs, 21 doubles and 35 RBI.

Preller’s staff is guilty of failing to notice his potential as a run producer. Someone in the organization needed to recognize his talents in their minor league progress reports. If so, France would have never been included in the deadline trade.

In 89 games with the Padres, he hit .251 with nine homers and 34 RBI. The lone negative was his failure to be selective at the plate. France recorded only 14 walks during his time in San Diego.

But the above statistical numbers show that he has improved to become a more disciplined hitter. His strikeout ratio decreased from 24.4% with the Friars to 15.3% with the Mariners. Also, France’s walk ratio has improved to 7.1% this season.

The Padres need an effective role player like France ASAP. He carries himself well at the plate while developing into a serviceable defensive first baseman. But his ability to drive in runs has been sorely missed this season.