"Preller drives everyone nuts!" said an AL executive. "He basically kept multiple teams on the hook as he shopped De Vries. He was a buyer, but kind of operated like a seller in terms of auctioning off De Vries to the highest bidder."

San Diego Padres general manager A.J. Preller had a trade deadline to remember, and one report shows how uncommon his strategy was.

A.J. Preller of the San Diego Padres is arguably the most fun general manager in MLB because of his insatiable desire to make trades, but that also makes him difficult for people around the league to deal with.