Padres Tumble In "Way-Too-Early" 2027 Power Rankings

The most noteworthy accomplishment from the San Diego Padres' 91-71 record and second-place finish in the NL West in 2026 is that it enabled them to qualify for the postseason for the third year in a row, a franchise-first, while extending their current "golden age" to five playoff appearances in the seven seasons since 2020.

According to one media outlet, however, it will be difficult for the 2027 Padres to make it four straight and six-of-eight.

On Thursday, The Athletic team of Stephen J. Nesbitt, Chad Jennings and Tim Britton released their "2027 Way-Too-Early MLB Power Rankings" and it makes for some grim reading for the Padres and their fans.

Specifically, after the Padres were ranked eighth overall at the conclusion of the regular season, they go into the offseason ranked 18th overall, which is 10th among the National League's 15 teams, and ahead of only one 2026 playoff squad, the No. 24 Houston Astros, who made history by becoming the first team with a non-winning record (81-81) to qualify for the postseason.

Within the NL West, the Los Angeles Dodgers are No. 2 overall behind the World Series champion Milwaukee Brewers and the Arizona Diamondbacks came in 12th, which would be good for the NL's final wild-card spot. The San Francisco Giants (No. 26) and Colorado Rockies (No. 29) are expected to be bottom-feeders again.

Of course publishing power rankings less than 12 hours after the World Series ended is a fool's errand, akin to claiming to know what a completed painting will actually look like before the first brush strokes hit the canvas.

But there is solid reasoning behind The Athletic's positioning of the Padres and it starts on the mound.

Of the 11 pitchers who made five or more starts for San Diego in 2026, four - Michael King (32, who opted out of his deal on Thursday), Walker Buehler (32), Casey Mize (10) and Robbie Ray (9) - will be free agents, while option/buyout decisions still must be made regarding Griffin Canning (11), German Marquez (10), Nick Pivetta (8), Wandy Peralta (5) and Lucas Giolito (5).

That leaves Randy Vasquez (23) and J.P. Sears (6), who is arbitration-eligible, as the only pitchers with notable starting experience on the roster at the moment.

In the bullpen, while the Padres have four more years of contract control regarding lockdown closer Mason Miller, two other back-end stalwarts - Adrian Morejon and Jason Adam - will be hitting the open market.

The Athletic writers called King opting out "a huge hit to an already thin Padres' rotation set to [also] lose trade-deadline acquisitions Mize and Ray," while adding that president of baseball operations A.J. Preller will "also need to reinforce the team's typically dominant bullpen."