AJ Preller Speaks At GM Meetings: Fernando Tatis Jr.'s Versatility Opens Doors For Padres' Offseason Approach

The General Manager Meetings are currently happening in Las Vegas, and DiamondCentric's Matt Trueblood was able to get some quotes from AJ Preller, the Padres' President of Baseball Operations.

The San Diego Padres experimented with Fernando Tatis Jr. at second base in 2026 due more to necessity than need.

In 2027, however, seeing Tatis at second base instead of right field will be more planned if it does unfold regularly.

“I think (that is) something we’re still kind of working through and a little bit depending on what the roster looks like,” Padres president of baseball operations A.J. Preller said at the General Managers Meeting in Las Vegas. “I think we'll get more into that over the next couple weeks, and it really just depends on how we fill out the roster. We'll be really clear with Fernando and other players on the team, ‘Hey, it's gonna be a hybrid,’ (or)
’It's gonna be right field. What does this all look like?’ So he can prepare and be ready for the season as best as possible.”

Tatis, who moved off of shortstop due to a left shoulder injury that required surgery in 2022, has expressed his fondness of playing second base, which currently has Jake Cronenworth atop the depth chart. Tatis is the more dynamic player who showed his defensive prowess at second on several occasions—also a few spots of infield rust—which could mean Cronenworth takes a platoon role at first base or is traded. But as Preller said, it is too early to make a definitive decision at this stage of the offseason when more moves will impact how the roster looks entering spring training.

Still, Tatis’ versatility and willingness to play second has opened avenues that the Padres may not have seen in previous offseasons.

“I think having guys that can move around the field and that we have, you know, both infield, outfield—that's helpful, for sure,” Preller said. “For Fernando, we've seen him be (a) Platinum Glove right fielder, and last year, he was very productive when he played second base, both offensively and defensively.
So, yeah, it helps. I think, again, having versatile players that are super-talented, that's never a bad thing. And I think with Tati, it gives us at least the ability to have more conversations with different players about different opportunities than just having somebody locked into a single spot.”

Already in the market for a left fielder, acquiring two corner outfielders would push Tatis to second base, while bringing in someone to play second would keep him in right.

Seeking Skubal

The Padres are one of six teams that have a meeting with superstar left-hander Tark Skubal, the top free agent available this offseason, and agent Scott Boras next week in SoCal. Boras also represents other Padres possibilities in former Friars right-hander Nick Martinez and Japanese right-hander Kaima Taira. Preller and Boras had a face-to-face meeting Tuesday to discuss the 29-year-old Skubal, who won the AL Cy Young Award with the Detroit Tigers in 2024 and 2025.

Skubal would be a monumental signing for the Padres and help form the rest of the starting rotation, which is basically starting from scratch entering the offseason. Skubal will be commanding a record salary for a pitcher with an average annual value of at least $45 million, which would be a big financial commitment by the Padres’ new owners, Jose E. Feliciano and Kwanza Jones.
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Right-hander Randy Vasquez is the only returning starter from the 2026 rotation, with right-hander Joe Musgrove, who has pitched three postseason innings in two years due to Tommy John surgery and left-hander JP Sears as other options. Right-hander Yu Darvish, about a year removed from an internal brace procedure, has been throwing bullpens, but he is also 40 years old and can’t be counted on at the moment, especially with retirement a possibility.

The Padres did already add a pitcher to their staff in right-hander Ryan Weiss, who had a rough season in 2026 with the Houston Astos.

Budget Flexibility

The big question under Feliciano and Jones’ ownership, still less than three months old, was how much of a financial commitment they would make this offseason. Considering the Padres are a legitimate contender for Skubal, you can figure they are willing to keep up with their “all in” mantra.

Preller said there is not a hard target for a player payroll for 2027. Instead, there appears to be the willingness to go big for the right player(s).

“We've talked about different concepts and players that are available and kind of what it looks like, but we haven't said, ‘Hey, this is the hard and fast number right now,’” Preller said. “What we are committing to is, we're gonna put a team on the field that'll be competitive. And that's not at a certain number or level. That really is more player-specific. That's what this week is for: to really start to line up on what trades are possible. and then where free agents are and who we start to line up a little more with.

“Right now, we've got a big wish list and that starts getting narrowed down this week. When we get there, then the next step is with Jose, Kwanza, Eric (Greupner), myself, Josh (Stein, the assistant general manager), sitting down and being like, ‘OK, these are different payroll levels that we go to.’ Jose and Kwanza are open to having those conversations, and open to what that means from a different dollar amount and different contract commitments, and hopefully make some good decisions.”

Going Prospecting

Preller is a big fan of exploring the Japanese market for players and, in addition to three prominent players who have been posted by their Nippon Professional Baseball teams, there is an 18-year-old who is technically an international free agent and is looking to bypass the traditional route taken by players from that country.

That is Shoki Oda, a right-hander who announced last month he was coming to the U.S. in one fashion or another. Oda, projected to be a first-round pick in the NPB Draft, stood out at the prestigious Summer Koshien high school tournament this year and clocked a tournament-record 97.6 mph fastball in the semifinal game for Yokohama. Oda could also choose to pursue going to a U.S. college, a route taken by slugging first baseman Rintaro Sasaki, who went to Stanford and then was chosen in the eighth round of the 2026 MLB Draft by the Miami Marlins.

“We've always ... looked at the possibility of Japanese amateur players coming to the States, and we’ve seen in years past, there have been, obviously, players that have said they wanted to do it,” Preller said. “We've been involved in the recruitment of the players that wanted to do it. I think it's exciting, but ultimately, you just want guys to make the best decisions based on different options that they have in front of them. So I think we'd be supportive if a Japanese high school pitcher decides he wants to come to the States.”

There is another month left in the international signing period before a month off and the scheduled beginning of the 2027 session, although that could be put on hold due to the collective-bargaining agreement negotiations as an international draft is on the table.

The Replacements

The Padres lost bullpen coach Ben Fritz and A.J. Ellis, special assistant to the major-league staff and baseball operations, to better roles with other teams. Fritz, who lives in the Phoenix area, is now the pitching coach for the Arizona Diamondbacks, while Ellis joined manager Andy Green’s staff with the New York Mets as a major-league strategy coordinator.

Those moves came in the last two weeks, and Preller said the Padres are still in the process of figuring out candidates and how they might fit into manager Craig Stammen’s staff for his second season. Preller said Fritz’s replacement could have an elevated title, which would not be a threat to current and well-respected pitching coach Ruben Niebla, who also holds the title of associate manager. Internal candidates include Peter Summerville, Chris Apecechea and Mike Borzello.

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