I wrote an annual awards column in the past few days, but I didn't mention Executive of the Year. And really, I think the choice this season is easy: AJ Preller, the Padres' president of baseball operations.
Preller gets little love from his colleagues. In 2010, when he was an assistant GM with the Rangers, he was suspended for illegally negotiating with a promising pitcher from the Dominican Republic, but the original three-month suspension was eventually reduced to one month. Ta. In 2016, his second full season with the Padres, Preller was suspended for 30 days for keeping two sets of medical records and providing less detailed records to the team he traded to.
There are tough elements to the relationship between teams, but trust is also necessary in matters such as trades. As such, some executives approach the deal with the Padres with greater skepticism than others.
It would be short-sighted for many of them to honor Preller as Executive of the Year right now, as all the long-term blockbuster contracts signed and all the prospects traded under his watch will surely be paid for in the future. I can hear you screaming. After all, huge spending kept the Padres from making the playoffs last season, and Preller's past includes deals that didn't work out, especially with Max Fried and Trey Turner (when he was a prospect). This includes:
