A.J. Preller is still in search of the right fit in the Padres dugout.
Wednesday morning the San Francisco Giants introduced Bob Melvin as their new manager. It is a homecoming for Melvin, who spent less than two full years at Petco Park. The soon-to-be 62-year-old is from the Bay Area, attended Cal, played for the Giants, and managed Oakland.
He said this was the only job opening he would have considered, and expressed his appreciation for the Padres President of Baseball Operations allowing him to interview for the job.
In the end it probably wasn't much of a sacrifice for Preller, who said he planned to move forward with Melvin as recently as the last week. Multiple reports of discontent between the two painted an image of men who would both benefit from a split.
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Melvin had the first opportunity to address the matter today.
“I really don’t want to get too much into the San Diego situation other than the fact that I really enjoyed my time there. Some things transpired last year in a difficult year for the team with expectations," Melvin said. “I think there was a narrative at the end that probably wasn’t going to go away with being on my last year of my contract. I think as far as that organization goes it’s probably not fair if that narrative continued through next year. So all things considered this opportunity came about…this feels like the right one for me. I very much enjoyed my time in San Diego it just seems like with a lot of things that were popping up there it was just time to move on.”
Melvin signed a three-year contract with the Giants.
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While he did not directly address conflict with Preller, both referenced aspects of the Padres franchise that might have made for a challenging fit - whether it be use of analytics, size of coaching staff, or a roster with high profile players.
While Preller remained evasive with regard to friction between he and his former manager, he did hint often at the need to find a clubhouse leader more aligned with his vision for the franchise.
"I think as we go forward to the next manager we've gotta make sure we have somebody from that standpoint wanting the best information, wanting to use our resources as an organization, and then myself over the top trying to coordinate it all," Preller said. "I think that's something I gotta really focus on to make sure we nail that and we did at different points the last couple years. But I think as Bob eluded to, I think he felt it was a little better fit and I think we've gotta find a manager that fits our group and our organization right now."
Preller also expressed the desire to be more involved with the team moving forward. He said in the 2020 COVID-19 season he felt most active and involved in the team because there wasn't much else to do. In a 60-game season they had one of the highest winning percentages in club history and won a three-game Wild Card series over the Cardinals.
"I feel like our group played well, and the biggest thing was because there was communication constantly between players, staff, myself, training staff, research and development, etc."
Preller said that communication tailed off in 2021, and he took a step back out of respect for Melvin the last couple seasons. He expressed a commitment to getting it right, like he believes they did in 2020.
As for the search for Melvin's replacement, Preller says they shifted their attention there Wednesday. According to multiple reports they are interviewing in-house candidates Mike Shildt and Ryan Flaherty. Preller said there is a lot of interest in the opening, and that they have heard from accomplished candidates.
The Padres will have a fourth manager in a six year span in 2024.
