So, this is what the Washington Nationals have started.

A year after the Nats broke a 50-year drought and won the franchise’s first World Series, the San Diego Padres are trying to trade in their 51-year absence for one.

“Trade” being the operative word after Padres’ general manager A.J. Preller swung five whirlwind deals in 48 hours, shipping out 16 players and acquiring 10 new ones to stamp San Diego as a honest-to-Alexander Cartwright championship contender in this COVID-19 contorted season.

It isn’t just the sheer numbers through the revolving door, but the incoming quality that was impressive as the trade deadline closed Monday. Already owners of the third-best record in the National League entering Monday’s game with Colorado, the Padres added key pieces in the right places.

Front-line starting pitcher Mike Clevinger was acquired from Cleveland; catcher Austin Nola comes over from Seattle; reliever Trevor Rosenthal was added from Kansas City, and designated hitter Mitch Moreland arrives from Boston.

Rosenthal was added to shore up a bullpen that will be without Kauai’s Kirby Yates, the MLB leader in saves last season, after he last week underwent what is expected to be season-ending elbow surgery.

Not even “Trader Jack” McKeon — the Padres’ wily general manager and occasional manager who put together the 1984 team that won San Diego’s first National League title before losing to the Tigers in the World Series — swung this many trades in such a short period.

McKeon, it will be remembered, even traded his son-in-law, pitcher Greg Booker.

With MVP candidate Fernando Tatis Jr., Manny Machado, Eric Hosmer and Chris Paddack, the Padres figured to end their run of nine sub-.500 seasons. And, with eight teams in each league making the expanded playoffs this season (up from five each last year), the Padres were deemed likely to earn a playoff berth for the first time in 14 seasons.

Before the start to this truncated season, shortstop Tatis Jr. took the talk to a grander level, aiming for what he termed “the big cake (World Series).” Tatis said, “Why not? Let’s go win a World Series.”

It seemed a considerable reach at the time. But now, after their early showing and the trades, their first-place NL West rivals, the Dodgers, can hear the footsteps all the way up the I-5 freeway.

“Coming now, it’s getting even a little better,” Clevinger said on Monday’s media conference call. “Getting me and the rest of the guys in tune with the squad, this is a team to make a serious, serious run. I don’t think there’s many teams that can get in the way of what we’ve got right now.”

In 1969 the National League added two expansion franchises, the Montreal Expos, who eventually moved to Washington in 2005, and the Padres. Last year the re-christened Nationals ended their World Series drought. And the Padres took note.

Currently, none of the teams in MLB have waited longer to win a World Series than the often forlorn Padres. But, then, on Monday none of them made more moves to try to do something about it.

Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@staradvertiser.com or 529-4820.