It is predicted that San Diego (SD) general manager AJ Preller (46), who recruited Kim Ha-seong (28), will remain in office for the 11th year next season despite the team’s performance below expectations. .
Ken Rosenthal, an American Fox Sports reporter and major league reporter, recently appeared on the Internet broadcast ‘Foul Territory’ and said, “San Diego is facing another ‘losing season’ (winning percentage below .500), but that does not mean General Manager Preller’s “There are no signs that his position is under threat,” he said. “San Diego team owner Peter Seidler (63) still has affection for him. Depending on how you look at it, General Manager Preller can feel like Seidler’s son. Of course, it’s excessive.” “It may be an expression, but their relationship seems that good.”카지노사이트
San Diego spent $253,287,946 (about 339,025,910,000 won) on total team salaries this season, ranking third in the major leagues in this category, following the New York Mets and New York Yankees. A large investment was made, but the results were shabby. As of the 22nd (Korean time), San Diego remains in 4th place in the National League West Division with 75 wins, 78 losses, and a winning percentage of 0.490 this season. The gap between them and the first place LA Dodgers in the district is a whopping 19.5 games.
They are also ranked 7th in the National League wild card race, which is given to three teams. They are four games behind the Chicago Cubs and Miami, who are tied for third place, so advancing to the postseason through a wild card is not easy.
The report card of General Manager Preller, who was appointed as the general manager of San Diego in 2014 and has been in charge of the club’s management for 10 years, is not good. Excluding 2020 (winning percentage 0.617), which was a shortened season due to COVID-19, there was only one ‘winning season’ last year (0.549). For the rest, the win rate was less than 50%.
Reporter Rosenthal, who is considered a major league source, mentioned this point in an interview with the media and said, “If San Diego manager Bob Melvin (62) resigns or is fired after this season, as many as six managers will be hired in the 10 years since General Manager Preller took office. “I will pack my bags,” he said. “It is very unusual for general manager Preller to continue to remain in his position even under such unfavorable circumstances, and this is possible due to the affection of team owner Seidler for the general manager. I wonder what will happen after the season ends. “he said.
Even if his position is preserved, General Manager Preller is expected to have a very busy time this winter.
First of all, it is highly likely that San Diego’s ace Blake Snell (31) will become a free agent and leave the team after the end of this season. In addition, several pitchers, including starting pitcher Seth Lugo (34) and closer Josh Hader (29), can also exercise their options, making reorganization of the pitching staff an urgent priority.
The contract with central hitter Juan Soto (25) is also expected to be a difficult task to resolve. He qualified for salary adjustment for the second time this year and received $23 million (about 30.6 billion won), and will be eligible for salary adjustment again after the season ends. Soto is achieving outstanding results this year as well, with a batting average of 0.267, 32 home runs, and 101 RBI in 153 games. The salary increase rate is also a concern, but since Soto wants a long-term contract, difficulties are expected in the negotiation process.
Reporter Rosenthal said, “San Diego will not make the same investments this year in the future. However, it will not stop spending money unconditionally as it did in the past. One good thing is that many fans continue to come to the stadium despite poor performance. These fans “To repay the support, now is the time to produce results commensurate with it,” he pointed out. According to data from ESPN, an American sports channel, San Diego drew an average of 40,364 people per game this season, ranking third in this category after the Dodgers and Yankees.
Meanwhile, Seidler, the grandson of the late former Dodgers owner Walter O’Malley, formed the ‘O’Malley Group’ with his uncle and others in 2012 and participated in the San Diego acquisition, then purchased all of the shares of Ron Fowler, who was the majority shareholder, in November 2020. He rose to the position of club owner. He is the son of Walter O’Malley and the nephew of Peter O’Malley (86), who was also the owner of the Dodgers.