Padres’ 2026 outlook shifts fast after a blunt verdict on playoff chances

It wouldn’t be a surprise if someone told you that the Padres roster would look a lot different come 2026, as the team saw six impact players sit on the open market at one point.

Out of that bunch, Dylan Cease, Robert Suárez, Ryan O’Hearn, and potentially Luis Arráez all found new homes. 

• Dylan Cease: seven-year, $210 million with the Toronto Blue Jays
• Robert Suárez: three-year, $45 million with the Atlanta Braves
• Ryan O’Hearn: two-year $29 million with the Pittsburgh Pirates
• Luis Arrárz: still on the market

The Padres managed to bring back Michael King on a three-year, $75 million contract, keeping him at the front-end of the starting rotation along with Nick Pivetta, who seemed to be the only guarantee in that unit heading into the offseason.

Padres’ 2026 playoff path looks shakier after a blunt reality check

President of baseball operations, A.J. Preller, didn’t shy away from saying the truth about the roster. Openly stating that he didn’t believe that the select group of guys represented a playoff team at the moment.

“This is not a playoff team as currently constructed,” Preller said. “I think it's probably a playoff-caliber offense. But a playoff team needs a heck of a lot more starting pitching than this team currently has.”

This sounds like Preller is not done, nor should he be. There are still plenty of holes that must be filled before the roster is even considered close to what it once was.

Solidifying the back-end of the starting rotation, as well as figuring out who the first basemen of the future is going to be, will definitely be the priority from here, up until spring training. Also, what is the plan with Jake Cronenworth? Does Preller have a plan to trade the 31-year-old infielder in exchange for one of the needs? It would knock out two birds with one stone.

Preller has indicated that he isn’t close to being done, and that should excite Padres fans all over.