3 San Diego Padres predictions we wish we'd have made before the season began

2) Padres prediction we wish we made: Seth Lugo would be a legit starting pitcher

The Seth Lugo signing was an interesting one. He's a guy who had always wanted to be a starter, but struggled in that role as a Met and was a really solid reliever for many years in New York. He came up as a starter and certainly has the stuff to start, but part of what made him a great reliever was how different he was from a prototypical reliever.

Lugo has a 4.18 career ERA in his 42 starts, and that's including the four he's made this season. As a reliever, he has a 2.91 ERA in 237 appearances. One is far better than the other.

The Padres lacked depth in their rotation so they took a flyer on Lugo. It's only been one month but boy, has that worked out thus far.

Lugo has made four starts for San Diego and has allowed three runs or fewer in all of them. He's gone at least six innings in three of the four, and it's not like he's faced horrible teams either.

Lugo's second start of the season came in Atlanta. The result? One run in six innings. He pitched two-run ball in six innings in his most recent start in Arizona. He threw 100 pitches in that start, the second time he's reached that mark this season.

I thought maybe by the time Musgrove returned from the injured list that Lugo would revert to a bullpen spot, but that won't be happening anytime soon. He looks like a legitimate starter, and the Padres might've struck gold with the two year deal they gave him.