SAN DIEGO -- Fred Uhlman Jr., the Padres’ longest-tenured baseball operations executive, is leaving the organization.

The Padres assistant general manager has submitted his resignation. Uhlman will continue some Padres duties during a short transitional stage before he departs. He said he intends to remain in baseball but doesn’t have anything lined up.

“It’s just time,” Uhlman said this week. “Twenty-eight of the 29 years I’ve been here, I’ve been doing the same thing. I’ve been very fortunate, but there’s just a shelf life. And I think my shelf life has expired in that role.”

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Uhlman joined the Padres before the 1995 season and has been a key player behind the scenes for general managers Randy Smith, Kevin Towers, Jed Hoyer, Josh Byrnes and A.J. Preller. An expert in the minutiae of MLB transaction regulations, Uhlman has been valued counsel on roster decisions throughout his time in San Diego.

"Fred Uhlman Jr. has been a close colleague, sounding board and friend since the day I arrived here in San Diego," Preller said on Wednesday. "While his work is often done out of sight and behind the scenes, anyone in the game of baseball will tell you what it means to have 'FUJR' in your corner.

"His passion for this organization and dedication to the inner workings of a baseball operation have been invaluable, not only for me but for the countless people he has worked alongside in his 29 years as a Padre. As a first-time general manager, I know I will always be grateful for the many years we've had together."

Uhlman comes from a scouting background and is hearing the scouts’ siren song. Uhlman’s father, the late Fred Uhlman Sr., was a scout and scouting executive for 46 years, including three decades with the Orioles. Uhlman Jr. worked nearly a decade in the Orioles’ scouting and player development departments before joining the Padres.

“I’d like to go back to what it was like when I was watching baseball with my dad,” Uhlman Jr. said. “Just scouting without all the ancillary things.”