Time is running out for San Diego Padres chairman Ron Fowler and the folks who work for him, and we know this because Fowler says so. We can speculate about 2020 being a win-now season for the Mets and Phillies, but Fowler himself has already declared next season and the year that follows as must-win for his franchise.

"We've said that in '20 and '21, we have to compete," Fowler told NBC San Diego and other news outlets. "We mean that. The fact that we sucked at the end of last year, the fact that we played only .347 baseball after the All-Star Game is absolutely unacceptable. ... We were an embarrassment the last three, four weeks of the regular season."

If the Padres don't compete, Fowler said in September, "Heads will roll, beginning with mine."

The greatest complication with this -- and there are many -- is that the Padres have given no indication they are actually close to making the leap Fowler insists they must take over the next 23 months.