As expected, the Padres reinstated Joe Musgrove from the 60-day injured list to start Monday’s game against the Pirates. San Diego designated reliever Carl Edwards Jr. for assignment to open space on both the active and 40-man rosters.
Musgrove has been sidelined since the end of May on account of elbow inflammation. This was his second elbow-related IL stint of the season.
He hasn’t looked like himself around the injuries, struggling to a 5.66 ERA over 10 starts. His 92.4 mph fastball speed was a bit below last season’s 93.1 mph average. Opponents teed off on both his four-seam and cutter. Musgrove allowed nearly two home runs per nine innings and saw his strikeout rate fall to 20.6% — his lowest clip in six seasons.
After a few months away, Musgrove will try to recapture his 2021-23 form. The San Diego-area native combined for a 3.05 ERA across 459 2/3 innings over his first three seasons with his hometown club. While Musgrove’s 2023 campaign was cut short by a shoulder issue, he looked like a No. 2 or high-end No. 3 starter over the preceding two and a half seasons.
He steps back into the Friars rotation as they look to at least hang onto a wild-card spot. They currently occupy the second NL wild-card spot and are four games clear of the No. 6 seed Braves. San Diego is tied with the Diamondbacks for second place in the NL West, 3.5 games behind the Dodgers in the division.
Musgrove’s return nudges Randy Vásquez out of the rotation. San Diego already optioned Vásquez last week with the knowledge that their All-Star righty would get the ball Monday. Musgrove slots behind Dylan Cease and Michael King and in front of Matt Waldron and MartÃn Pérez in the starting five.
The Padres have been without Yu Darvish for five weeks as he attends to a family matter. Dennis Lin of the Athletic reported Monday afternoon that Darvish set up a live batting practice session at a local high school over the weekend. It’s still not clear whether he’ll be able to return this season, but the veteran righty is keeping his arm in shape in case he can get back.
Edwards was just selected onto the MLB roster late last week. He pitched once and failed to retire any of three batters faced. The 32-year-old righty has otherwise spent this season in Triple-A. Splitting his time between the Cubs and Padres organizations, he owns a 3.30 ERA across 46 1/3 frames in the minors. His 22.2% strikeout rate and lofty 14.3% walk percentage aren’t great, though, so he hasn’t gotten much of an MLB opportunity this year.
San Diego will put Edwards on waivers in the next couple days. He has more than enough service time to decline a minor league assignment if he goes unclaimed, though he’d likely be limited to minor league offers if he elects free agency.
