San Diego Padres: 4 worst moves by A.J. Preller since 2014

A.J. Preller has been the San Diego Padres' general manager for nearly a decade. And in that time, he has developed a reputation for being one of baseball's most ambitious executives, orchestrating a number of high profile trades (Juan Soto last summer, for example) and big-ticket free agent signings, the most recent of which being star shortstop Xander Bogaerts.

Taking a lot of swings also means plenty of misses along the way, however. Let's examine four of Preller's worst deals since becoming general manager of the Padres.

San Diego Padres: 4 worst moves by A.J. Preller since 2014

1. Dealing Trea Turner to the Nationals as part of a three-team Wil Myers swap

Wil Myers was once a heralded top prospect on the brink of stardom. He never reached that potential in the big leagues, but was always a solid, albeit injury-prone player. But what the Padres gained in this three-team deal (Myers and catcher Ryan Hanigan) doesn't amount to what they lost.

No one expected Trea Turner, the player to be named later (PTBNL) to end up being the shining star in this trade, but that's what happened here. Drafted 13th overall in 2014 by the Padres, Turner wound up becoming a star with the Nationals in short order after he was traded there, receiving a big league call-up the next season (2015).

The Padres' shortstops in 2015? Alexi Amarista and Clint Barmes. Talk about wanting a do-over.

It would take until Fernando Tatis Jr.'s arrival in 2019 for the Padres to find a legitimate solution at shortstop, leaving A.J. Preller to wonder what could've been with Trea Turner.