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.

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

3. Firing manager Bud Black midway through the 2015 season

Sensing a theme with this 2015 season? It didn't go well for the Padres.

One of the mistakes A.J. Preller made that season wasn't player-related, though. Rather, it was the decision to fire veteran manager Bud Black in June.

Black never qualified for the postseason as Padres' skipper, but he is a respected figure in MLB and landed on his feet within two years after he was canned from San Diego, landing the manager's gig with the Colorado Rockies in 2017. Black is still serving as Rockies' skipper, and as much as Colorado has struggled since back-to-back playoff appearances, he isn't the one to blame for that. Nor was he really to blame for San Diego's misfortune in 2015.

The main culprit behind the lack of success for the Padres in 2015? Poor roster construction. A scapegoat is always necessary, though, and Black. unfortunately, was ripe for picking.

After Black was fired, the Padres employed Andy Green and Jayce Tingler as their next two managers before finally landing Bob Melvin prior to the 2022 season. It's safe to say neither of Green or Tingler worked out too well. Perhaps the Padres should've just retained Black...

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

4. Signing first baseman Eric Hosmer to the then-largest contract in franchise history

The intention behind this signing was understood. That doesn't change the fact that this move didn't work out as anticipated.

Hosmer, coming off a career season with the Kansas City Royals in 2017, signed an eight-year, $144 million contract with the San Diego Padres prior to the 2018 season. A.J. Preller wanted to make a splash to indicate that his team was once again ready to emerge from the depths of rebuild. But the numbers Hosmer put up didn't align with the contract's valuation.

Adding insult to injury, Hosmer only ended up spending four-and-a-half seasons with the Padres, as he was traded to the Boston Red Sox at last year's trade deadline, leaving Preller and his team on the hook for the remainder of the contract.

Trading a player with substantial years and money still owed to him is effectively admitting defeat. Sometimes, it's simply the right call to do so.