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New Padres GM gives team jolt of bold

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If you don’t know the name yet, learn it: A.J. Preller.

Let’s say it one more time with feeling: A.J. Preller.

Baseball fans know him as the 37-year-old wunderkind who took over as the Padres’ general manager in August. But you can refer to him simply as The Man Who Brought Excitement Back to Petco Park.

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Last week, Preller struck a deal with the Dodgers that brought two-time All-Star Matt Kemp to San Diego. Wednesday, he landed 2013 American League Rookie of the Year Wil Myers via a trade with the Rays.

Whether these moves work out in the long run remains to be seen. But if you’re a Padres fan, you can’t help but be awestruck by this man’s audacity.

Never in the Petco Park era has an offseason generated so much buzz. Never since the Padres moved downtown has December spawned so much hope.

Preller came to this city and obliterated stereotypes fans had about a conservative front office. The man is as bold as San Diego is beautiful.

Of course, credit must also go to the Pads’ Ron Fowler-led ownership group. Before the Kemp and Myers trades went down, the brass backed massive contract offers to free agents Pablo Sandoval and Yasmany Tomas, who ultimately chose other teams.

To see such ambition -- not to mention such willingness to spend money -- is a complete about face from what we thought we knew about this organization. What’s still uncertain, however, is whether any of this will actually pay off.

In order to get Myers, who came with catcher Ryan Hanigan and two pitching prospects, Preller had to unload some talent. Among the players he dealt were catcher Rene Rivera and minor-leaguer Trea Turner, who many considered the Padres’ shortstop of the future.

Myers, meanwhile, is far from a sure thing. Yes, the outfielder hit .293 with 13 home runs in 88 games as a rookie, but in 87 games last year, he hit just .222 with six home runs before breaking his wrist.

So questions such as “which season reflected the real Wil Myers?” and “can this guy stay healthy?” are perfectly valid. The same goes for Kemp, who missed 56 games in 2012, 89 games in 2013, and whose physical is still pending.

For all we know, Preller’s decision-making could prompt a team that went 77-85 last year to go 67-95 next year. But that’s not the point.

The point is this: The Padres are freakin’ going for it.

This club doesn’t have the resources that the Yankees, Dodgers or Red Sox do. The only chance it has to compete is to take big risks and hope the gambles pay off.

Truth be told, there really isn’t much of a difference between a 67-win season and a 77-win season. Missing the playoffs is a failure no matter how short you fall.

But if Kemp and Myers pan out, suddenly an offense that scored the fewest runs in baseball last year has two potent, powerful additions. And given the glut of outfielders on the roster (Kemp, Myers, Carlos Quentin, Will Venable, Seth Smith, Cameron Maybin, etc.), you can rest assured that Preller’s work isn’t done.

He still has tantalizing pitchers like Andrew Cashner, Tyson Ross and Ian Kennedy at his disposal. He still has many a chip to bargain with, many a carrot to dangle. The Padres’ roster has been under the plastic surgeon’s knife since Preller showed up, and there is no way the surgery is complete.

Look, it’s entirely possible that in the months or years to come, fans look back on Preller’s moves with utter disdain. For now, though, you have to admire the man’s brazen ways.

Petco Park has never been a hitter-friendly stadium. But Preller won’t stop swinging for the fences.

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