After nearly two years on the sidelines with an elbow injury, San Diego Padres pitcher Joe Musgrove returned to the mound and threw a scoreless inning in an 8-0 Game One Wild Card defeat of the Chicago Cubs.
If I were experiencing fantasy disappointment in the fact that Musgrove was never able to make it to the mound during the 2026 regular season, imagine the mountains and mountains of real-life frustration Musgrove was experiencing.
That frustration came to an end on Tuesday as, first, Musgrove, a San Diego native, was a surprise addition to the 11-man San Diego pitching staff for the Wild Card series against the Cubs before, second, he toed a rubber for the first time since Oct. 2, 2024, when he entered the game the ninth inning to a standing ovation from the sold-out crowd and his teammates at Petco Park.
Musgrove needed 22 pitches and allowed two hits and a walk that loaded the bases with one out, but he consistently hit 97 mph on the radar gun. He struck out two, including Michael Conforto looking on a curveball to end the game, to put a bow on the Padres' dominant 8-0 victory that puts them one win away from a spot in the NL Divisional Series against the top-seeded Milwaukee Brewers.
"I still can't really put it together," Musgrove said in a video posted on MLB.com after the game. "I was so excited to get back on the mound, man, I mean, it felt like home."
Musgrove's 727-day odyssey to return to the field began in Game Two of the 2024 Wild Card series against the Atlanta Braves. Musgrove started that game and was staked to a 5-1 lead. He entered the fourth looking destined for a win as he had allowed just one run while striking out four.
Then with two outs in the fourth, he felt extreme elbow tightness in his right elbow and exited the game. Though the Padres ended up winning 5-4 to advance to the NLDS against the Dodgers, where they would fall 3-2, Musgrove's season was over and the injury diagnosis was a damaged ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) that would require Tommy John surgery and sideline Musgrove for the entire 2025 season.
Musgrove did throw some bullpen sessions late in 2025 and entered spring training in February 2026 hoping his recovery had advanced to the point where he could return to the Padres' rotation. However, he began the season on the 60-day IL and needed to fight through a series of minor setbacks as the season progressed. Finally, in August, he began a minor-league rehab assignment and was activated from the IL on Tuesday, making him eligible for the postseason roster.
Musgrove's emotional and triumphant return was marveled at by his manager and teammates.
“It was emotional for a lot of people and probably especially Joe,” said manager Craig Stammen in a report by Cole Bradley on MLB.com. “The fanbase has always loved Joe because he's one of their own, and rightly so, they should. It just worked out tonight that it was a good time to bring him in the game.”
“I was emotional out there,” added Padres' starter Michael King, who pitched six no-hit and seven scoreless innings in picking up the win. “I never go back out to the field after I'm done pitching, but as soon as I saw him warming up, I had to go back out there to watch it. He means so much to this team and this city. To see the grind of rehab that he's had to go through for two straight years, I mean, it was awesome.”
Musgrove's post-IL reintroduction was admittedly cushy as he entered with his team holding an eight-run lead, but the stuff he exhibited and the command he showed may have proved to Stammen and pitching coach Ruben Niebla that Musgrove can be someone they can count on as the Padres continue the hunt for their first World Series title.
