San Diego Union-Tribune (Sunday)
Preller’s inspiring bloodless coup
Sez Me …
The Padres are to be feared. They have weapons. They have become the hunters.
They have taken over the chase by guile and with supreme knowledge of what drives them, what’s under their skin.
Without fear of reprisal. Without derring-do.
Rarely in their half-century ride have they taken on the challenge and purposely driven rapidly around the curves.
Rarely have they dared to be great.
So there has been a bit of a misconception surrounding their recent bit of importing and exporting.
The album rock group A.J. Preller and his Scouts recorded in a matter of hours — probably wilder than any contending franchise has ever done — was music to our ears, but not daring to be great. Striving for greatness, yes.
It was terrific. Relentless. Inspiring. So well thought out. But if you dare to be great, there must be something at least a little dangerous to dare for, and there wasn’t any danger to this. No gamble.
GM Preller led a safe, bloodless coup.
Even if it doesn’t work out, he pitched a shutout, because Preller couldn’t walk off the mound on worse ground than he was before the tornado he formed hit the ground with 500 mph winds.
You see? Lost in all of this is that, as the Padres roll into September, they can be better, but not worse — because of this, anyway.
When Preller broke in, he tried to make a splash in 2015, and it became a swamp. But that was daring to be great. This business was not. He traded away 16 players, including both starting catchers (getting two catchers in return who might be able to hit .200). He gave up a few good prospects — shortstop Gabriel Arias and third outfielder Taylor Trammell — among them.
I can’t say Preller traded away one player who absolutely fits into their future. Amazing, and without risk.
The players they traded for — including an ace in Mike Clevinger, starting catchers in Austin Nola/jason Castro, a seasoned DH in Mitch Moreland, and a closer in Trevor Rosenthal — are better than anything they had.
They went from encouraging to authentic in a matter of hours.
This roster almost entirely is made up with guys from somewhere else (no everyday player is home-grown), but they’re here because Preller’s put together perhaps the top farm system in baseball. So he was overstocked with young players he wasn’t going to need. He sold just a bit of his farm’s acreage.
Who cares how they became Padres, as long as they can play?
And, you can look at the haul and easily ask: Where’s the money coming from to pay all these guys?
That’s the second important thing. Peter Seidler, the team’s bank, didn’t have to open the vault to buy treasure. So, real gold or iron pyrite, there is little hit to take.
“Not much,” Seidler says. “Clevinger isn’t overly expensive (and not a free agent until 2023), and the players we acquired weren’t really expensive. The discipline in the trade room was impressive. Maybe we added a few million dollars, that’s it.”
Most GMS have slept through this COVID season. A.J. is an insomniac.
This was the safest, most productive in-season ride in their history. Never took it out of fifth gear.
The Slam Diego Stalkers. … Aug. 31, 1992. Fire sale roaring. Padres arsonists trade Craig Lefferts, who has 13 wins. They are seven games back, contenders . ...
Other than not returning my phone calls, people are asking what it is Preller does well. What he just did. …
I wonder if A.J. would return my call if I left a message in Spanish. …
The Padres are getting excellent years from players who are supposed to have excellent years. A rarity around here, where former ballers come to retire. …
I always thought this pitcher-catcher familiarity thing was overdone. Closer meets his catcher for the first time after he finishes off the game. Padres. …
Following the trade frenzy, one betting service lowered the Pads’ odds to win the World Series from 33-1 to 10-1 . ...
Baseball is a game without a watch . ...
Roger Goodell says the NFL’S Competition Committee can find no home-field advantage to a team with stands full or empty. When going to a loud place, coaches pump in noise during practice and go to silent counts. For what reason, Roger? …
Rog, what if a team plays at home before a crowd in which 90 percent of the fans are supporting the visitors? Does that factor into home-field advantage. …
It’s hard to intentionally tank in the NFL when so many others unintentionally seem to be, but the Jaguars may succeed. Rog, this is good for the game? ...
Leonard Fournette couldn’t block me on =Twitter . ...
Did anyone other than those who think it’s wise not to wear a mask really believe
Jarrett Stidham actually was beating out Cam Newton ?…
Pete Carroll: “White people need to be coached up.” I assume he means the previously uncoachable owners? …
Judases/l.a. Lodgers/ Backup Singers extend
Keenan Allen. I think their one PSL buyer is giving them great advice . ...
Kids go to college to learn, party, or do both, not necessarily in that order. Opening up universities is a sophomoric, dangerous mistake. …
But … General Without Portfolio Lou Holtz will get the Presidential Medal of Freedom for saying that, because our troops stormed Normandy, there should be no fear playing college football during the pandemic. …
If there was anyone SDSU had to lock up, it was Brian Dutcher, no longer Head Coach Waiting to Get a Raise….
I covered Smokey Gaines
from his first day on State’s campus. Recruiting out of a trailer, he got top kids to visit. Only one Smokey. There couldn’t be two. RIP. …
All-time classic Smokey line after a loss: “Look, Nick. Jerry Brown. One rebound. One more than a dead man.” …
RIP, John Thompson .I once sat with John and Paul Silas at Superstars camp. Amazing day with two men of great presence and principle . ...
Stink ’O The Week Sezment: Baseball revenge. Sour, not sweet. Best served apprehensively. Sixteen teams have more hit batsmen than the Astros . ...
North Dakota has 10 people per square mile, South Dakota 11, Iowa 55. They are COVID hot spots. What in the hell are these people doing? …
Again, Wall Street and the Economy Toll Road do not run parallel. There wouldn’t be two if they were the same . ...
“Morality, like art, means drawing a line someplace.” — Oscar Wilde
I will not vote twice. Once is taxing enough.