The San Diego Padres have had a quiet offseason on the pitching front, with the only real move being re-signing right-handed starter Michael King to a three-year deal that’s really a series of one-year options. They did get some positive news on the injury front, though, with the latest report on starter Joe Musgrove, which came courtesy of Charlie Wright of MLBTradeRumors.com via Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune.
Musgrove’s injury missed all of last season while recovering from Tommy John surgery, and his availability in 2024 was intermittent due to elbow inflammation and a lat strain. But Musgrove is expected to be ready for spring training, according to Acee, who also said the right-hander was getting ready for the NLCS last year if the Padres had made it that far.
“I feel really good right now,” Musgrove told Acee. “I feel like I’m in a good position physically, mentally for the season.”
The Padres will need everything they can get from Musgrove, The 33-year-old righty hasn’t pitched 100 innings or made 20 starts since 2022, and the only other proven rotation options at the moment are King and erstwhile ace Nick Pivetta, who may still be on the trade block.
GM A.J. Presser has high expectations, however. “We expect him to be a guy that can throw a lot innings for us this year,” Preller told reporters back in December.
The fan base has spent the offseason waiting for Preller to make a big move, but it hasn’t happened. The GM was expected to be active in the pitching market, but other than rumors that reliever Mason Miller might be dealt to the New York Mets, nothing has happened. There were also rumors that Miller and fellow reliever might be converted to starters, but those rumors quickly faded due to the possibility that the conversion might weaken a strong bullpen.
The back-end options in the rotation include starters Randy Vasquez and JP Sears, but neither pitcher is close to capable of providing the kinds of innings the Padres will need from their rotation. At this point it looks like the Padres will rely even more on their bullpen, which seems problematic given that closer Robert Suarez signed with the Atlanta Braves as a free agent.
It doesn’t seem possible that Preller and the Padres will go into this season with what they have, but each passing week without a major move makes that increasingly likely. A possible Pivetta trade might represent Preller's last stand on the pitching front, but so far that rumor remains just that.