The Padres announced that right-hander Lucas Giolito has been placed on the 15-day injured list, retroactive to June 22nd, with right elbow inflammation. Lefty JP Sears has been recalled to take Giolito’s roster spot.
The Friars haven’t yet provided any information on the severity of Giolito’s issue or his expected absence, but it’s a bit ominous given his history. Giolito missed the 2024 season while recovering from internal brace surgery. He was back on the mound with the Red Sox in 2025. Though he posted a 3.41 earned run average over 145 innings, there were some concerns. He was a bit lucky in terms of batted ball results and stranding baserunners. His 19.7% strikeout rate was subpar and well below his previous seasons. An elbow injury prevented him from pitching for Boston in the postseason.
He said in November that he was fully healthy. Regardless, he remained unsigned until almost a month into the regular season, when the Padres scooped him up. He agreed to be optioned to the minors to get built up. He was recalled in the middle of May. Since then, he has made seven appearances for the Padres with a 5.16 ERA. His strikeout rate has fallen even further from last year, as he has punched out just 13% of batters faced. He has also given out walks at an uncharacteristically awful 16.7% pace.
Perhaps most concerning of all is his velocity. His four-seamer is averaging just 90.8 miles per hour this year. That’s a big drop from last year’s 93.3 mph. His other pitches are also down about two to three clicks.
Though Giolito hasn’t been performing well, it’s still not ideal for the Padres to lose a member of their rotation. The team’s starters have a collective 4.54 ERA, putting them in the bottom third of the majors. Michael King and Walker Buehler are having decent seasons but Griffin Canning has a 6.64 ERA. Randy Vásquez got out to a good start but has a 5.10 ERA over his past 12 outings and a 6.91 ERA over his past six.
The Friars will now have to reach into their depth to add someone else into that mix. That might not need to come right away, since the club is off on Thursday. Canning is going tonight, pitching behind opener Wandy Peralta, with Vásquez scheduled for Wednesday. But after Thursday’s off-day, they play 17 in a row leading into the All-Star break.
Sears could perhaps be that guy, though he has a 7.92 ERA in Triple-A this year. Germán Márquez and Matt Waldron are both pitching rehab assignments right now, so they could be back in the mix shortly. However, Márquez put up a 5.76 ERA before hitting the IL while Waldron’s ERA is way up at 8.49.
Assuming the Padres hang in the playoff race over the coming weeks, they will likely be looking for rotation help. The farm system is quite depleted from aggressive trading over the years but president of baseball operations A.J. Preller is known to get creative in finding solutions. The Padres are currently tied for the final Wild Card spot in the National League with a 40-37 record.
Photo courtesy of Jeff Curry, Imagn Images
