Not so long ago, it looked like right-hander Joe Musgrove was on the verge of returning to the Padres. Now his progress has been slowed and it’s not even certain he will be able to rejoin the club in 2026, per Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune.
Musgrove underwent Tommy John surgery and flexor tendon repair in October of 2024. He missed the entire 2025 season but it was once hoped that he could be a key contributor in 2026. That still has not come to pass due to repeated setbacks.
He finally began a rehab assignment on August 4, tossing 2 2/3 innings in a Single-A game. He made a second rehab start five days later on August 9, logging 3 1/3 innings in a Triple-A game. Five days later, August 14, he got up to 4 2/3 innings. However, his next start wasn’t for 12 days, occuring on August 27. He did toss five innings but it seems the issue is more about what happens between those games.
“He’s just not recovering as quickly as he would like,” Padres manager Craig Stammen said. “But he’s able to recover eventually. So we’ve just got to — not really kick the can down the road, but, like, push those days off down the road a little bit and get him out there when we can.” Stammen added that Musgrove is feeling fatigue in his arm generally and in his elbow specifically.
There’s not much time left in the season, so Musgrove is running out of time to get in a good groove. If he can’t get back to the club, they will have to finish the campaign without him. The San Diego rotation has been an ongoing issue for a few years. This year, with Musgrove lingering on the IL all season and Nick Pivetta also struggling to get healthy, the Friars picked up Robbie Ray and Casey Mize ahead of the deadline. Those two currently hold spots alongside Michael King, Randy Vásquez and Walker Buehler.
Going into next year, there’s loads of uncertainty. Musgrove is signed through 2027 but he’s a big wild card right now. Even if he can get back to the team this year, he will presumably face workload restrictions after missing all of 2025 and most or all of 2026. Beyond that, King can opt out of his deal. Pivetta can be retained via a $14MM club option but he’s also an unknown right now due to his own injury odyssey. Ray, Mize and Buehler are all impending free agents.
On paper, the 2027 rotation has Vásquez in one spot and Musgrove in another, if healthy. Pivetta could be slotted in there if the Padres feel good enough about his arm going into next year. King would also be in there but only if he decides not to return to the open market, which probably means something bad happened down the stretch. The club will likely be looking for rotation help in the offseason one way or another and more injury trouble for Musgrove would only add to that need.
Photo courtesy of Jayne Kamin-Oncea, Imagn Images
