AJ Preller completed his first trade with his former club Tuesday, sending outfielder Will Venable to the Texas Rangers.
Venable was the Padres longest tenured player. The Princeton grad was drafted by the organization in 2007 and quickly rose to the majors, showing tantalizing potential as a speedy outfielder with a powerful bat. The Padres hoped Venable along with Nick Hundley and Chase Headley would comprise a homegrown nucleus that would lead the Padres to October.
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Out of the old group of home grown players, Venable was easily given the most time to rise to his potential, but Preller decided it was finally time to pull the plug.