PECOTA projects another losing season for San Diego Padres

The 2020 PECOTA projections are out and while they have the San Diego Padres winning more games, it’s not enough.

San Diego Padres pitchers and catchers reported to spring training on Monday with hopes of putting together their first winning season since 2010.

However, PECOTA has them finishing just short of that goal with a record of 79-83, finishing tied for second in the NL West with the Arizona Diamondbacks.

That’s much lower than most other projections I’ve seen that have the Padres winning between 83-86 games.

But the PECOTA projections aren’t very kind to a lot of teams in the National League.

They have the Cubs getting in the NL Wild Card game with just 85 wins, facing the Nationals who they have winning just 87 games.

I don’t completely understand how they put their projections together, but you can learn more about it here.

But common sense would tell you that with all but three NL teams trying to win in 2020, wins will be hard to come by.

The only NL team they have winning more than 88 games is the Los Angeles Dodgers who they have winning 103 games.

Isn’t it fun playing in the same division as them?

They have the Mets (yes, the Mets) winning the NL East with 88 wins and the Cincinnati Reds winning the NL Central with 86 wins.

Over in the American League they have they Yankees, Twins, and Astros winning their respective divisions rather easily with the Rays and Angels facing off in the AL Wild Card game.

Projections are fun, especially this time of year with spring training getting started, but they mean absolutely nothing.

Injuries, trades, regressions, breakouts are what make baseball so great and unpredictable.

Certainly the Padres are hoping to see some of their players bounce-back in Manny Machado, Eric Hosmer, and Wil Myers. And they’re also hoping some of their young guys continue to get batter like Fernando Tatis Jr. and Chris Paddack.

I think 75 wins is the floor for this team going into 2020 if things go wrong. And everything goes right I can see them winning 86-88 games and competing for a Wild Card sport.

What do you think of the PECOTA projections? And how many games do you see the Padres winning in 2020? Let us know in the comments below.