MLB SUSPENDS PADRES GM PRELLER FOR 30 DAYS
Major League Baseball, delivering one of its harshest penalties against a club general manager in history, suspended the San Diego Padres’ A.J. Preller for 30 days without pay for submitting false medical records to the Boston Red Sox. Preller becomes the first non-uniformed personnel publicly suspended since Marge
Schott, former owner of the Cincinnati Reds. She was banned for two years in 1996 and 1997 for making racial and ethnic slurs. Yet despite the severity of the penalty and the embarrassment to the organization, Preller will not be fired or receive further discipline from the Padres, a highranking club official told USA TODAY Sports. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because of the private nature of the internal conversations. MLB, which completed its investigation Thursday, determined the Padres did not include the entire medical records of pitcher Drew Pome
ranz when they traded him in July to the Red Sox. Boston filed an official complaint with MLB shortly after the trade in which they sent top pitching prospect
Anderson Espinoza to San Diego. At least one other club front office executive insisted the medical information was intentionally withheld, which led to Commissioner Rob Manfred’s harsh penalty. The Miami Marlins and Chicago White Sox also questioned the veracity of their records in summer trades with the Padres. The Marlins acquired pitchers Andrew Cashner, Col
in Rea and Fernando Rodney, and the White Sox acquired
James Shields. While Pomeranz and Shields have remained with the Red Sox and White Sox, respectively, Rea was diagnosed with elbow ligament damage that might require Tommy John surgery. Rea informed Marlins officials he had been receiving treatment on his elbow for weeks before the deal. Rea was sent back to the Padres.
— Bob Nightengale