A.J. Preller has become the favorite to become the Padres next GM
By Joel Burdeos
San Diego, CA- Texas Rangers assistant GM A.J. Preller has emerged as the favorite to become the next general manager for the San Diego Padres, according to Dennis Lin of UT-San Diego.
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Last week the Padres named Rangers assistant GM A.J. Preller, MLB Senior VP of Baseball Operations Kim Ng, Yankees assistant GM Billy Eppler and Red Sox assistant GM Mike Hazen as the finalists for the Padres GM job. This week they were all brought back to San Diego next week for a second round of interviews.
Last night the Padres interviewed Kim Ng to conclude their second round of interviews.
According to Lin, one reason Preller has emerged as the favorite is his expertise in evaluating international talent. Which is an area of talent the Padres have failed to be aggressive in acquiring for the past decade. Lin also reports that the Padres are expected to have a new GM in place after the July 31 trade deadline.
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It has been reported the Padres ownership is looking for a new GM that is expertised in player development and international scouting. Two areas that a team like the Padres need to be successful in if they want to compete with the Dodgers and Giants.
With player development and international scouting as the main area of skill Padres ownership is looking for, its no surprise Preller has emerged as the favorite.
A.J. Preller was the Texas Rangers senior director of player personnel from 2010-2013 and was promoted by Rangers general manager Jon Daniels to Assistant general manager last offseason. If the San Diego Padres hire A.J. Preller, he will be the youngest general manager in major league baseball. Preller is considered one of baseball’s best evaluators of international talent.
All four of the finalists would be solid choices to become the Padres next general manager. All four have done excellent jobs with their respective teams scouting and finding the best talent available, as shown by the success of the Rangers, Yankees and Red Sox the past decade.