Padres general manager A.J. Preller returned from his unpaid 30-day suspension for failing to disclose medical information to the Red Sox in the Drew Pomeranz trade, writes Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports (links to Twitter) that following the dismissal of Padres CEO Mike Dee, Preller will now report directly to ownership (which Lin specifies further, listing Ron Fowler and Peter Seidler). According to Rosenthal, that arrangement will remain in place even after the Padres hire a replacement for Dee, as the team’s next president will only oversee the business side of operations. Furthermore, Rosenthal adds that the Padres plan to make at least one hire, if not two, that will ensure compliance with medical regulations.
Preller offered a short comment to Lin upon his return: “It’s obviously been a busy day catching up on phone calls, getting started, looking toward the off-season with the front-office group, getting back and talking to (Padres manager Andy Green). Obviously, we’ve got a lot of work in front of us, today has been busy catching up on everything, and looking forward to getting back on the job.”
Lin adds that despite recent speculation on the matter, Major League Baseball’s investigation into the scandal is complete. As commissioner Rob Manfred said earlier this month (link via the Boston Herald’s Evan Drellich), the Red Sox were asked whether they wanted to rescind the Pomeranz-for-Anderson Espinoza swap when it came to light that the Padres had withheld information, but the team elected to hang onto Pomeranz because the trade deadline had already come and gone (the implication being that they wouldn’t be able to acquire further rotation help). The team will not hire a president of baseball operations to oversee Preller, Lin continues, nor will Preller’s decision-making power diminish in the wake of the scandal.