“It was too exaggerated.”
The Athletic reported that the discord between San Diego Padres general manager AJ Preller and manager Bob Melvin was serious at the end of this season. Officials also commented that it would be difficult to be together again next year. As can be seen from the nickname ‘Mad Man’, General Manager Preller’s unique aggressive style can be burdensome on the field.
They can sink below the surface just because of their performance, but San Diego failed to even advance to the postseason this year with 82 wins and 80 losses. The team payroll alone is $253,287,946 (approximately 342.2 billion won) based on Sportrak. It is ranked 3rd overall in the major leagues, and this year’s luxury tax threshold was well over $233 million. The payroll naturally increased as external free agents were steadily recruited in the non-FA multi-year contract parade.
They set an ambitious goal of winning the World Series over the Los Angeles Dodgers rather than in the postseason, but they have been frustrated for several years. No matter how much he is the manager of Preller, it is difficult to waste money every year when the results are not good. At some point, he is bound to face difficulties in collecting and nurturing promising players.
Have you faced reality? It was recently reported that San Diego will lower its payroll for the 2024 season to around $200 million. Director Preller had an interview with the San Diego media on the 5th (Korean time), but did not speak clearly on this matter. However, given that he did not deny it, it seems likely that it will proceed as is.토토사이트
Also, on this day, San Diego clearly confirmed that Coach Bob Melvin and General Manager Preller’s system will continue into the 2024 season. And General Manager Preller himself opened up about the rumor of discord with Coach Melvin. He told The Athletic: “Bob is our manager and will always be our manager. “He and I are very excited about the challenge of getting this team back to the postseason.”
Regarding the disagreement with coach Melvin, General Manager Preller said, “From my perspective, a lot of it has been exaggerated.” At the same time, he said, “We don’t talk 4 or 5 times a day.” It means that there is much more communication. Although he didn’t say it lightly, he clearly drew a line against rumors of discord.
In any case, The Athletic pointed out that General Manager Preller’s club management style has faced a lot of criticism in the industry. San Diego CEO Eric Grufner mentioned problems with this season’s roster last month and assessed that the team was facing a trend of change. The Athletic said that the team plans to reduce the team’s payroll and the budget of each department of the team while aiming to advance to the postseason.
He added that naturally, parting ways with free agents Blake Snell and Josh Hader, and trading Juan Soto with one year remaining in free agency will be pursued. Even if these are eliminated, payroll will decrease significantly. Even though Soto is a waste, it is right to organize it before he becomes a free agent in order to avoid giving him an extension worth more than $400 million.
According to The Athletic, on this day, General Manager Preller accepted the criticism from those around him and showed signs of reflection and regret. He said, “I feel like I lost my opportunity (to win the World Series) and missed it.” At the same time, he said, “It’s not every year as a general manager that I get a few breaks after the season starts and feel like I’m going to lift the flag of winning the World Series. But I agree with your records and beliefs.”