Pivetta, Musgrove will pitch in Single-A on Tuesday

Pivetta recorded two strikeouts and allowed just two baserunners, requiring an economical 63 pitches (39) strikes to cruise through five frames in his first start back in the majors since April 12. He gave up some loud contact, including six batted balls with exit velocities over 99 mph, but they didn’t come back to burn him. It was completely justifiable to question whether the 33-year-old veteran starter would make any sort of fantasy impact down the home stretch after such a lengthy layoff, but he seems to have answered those concerns with a strong effort right out of the gate. He’s in line for an extremely favorable matchup against the rebuilding Giants to wrap up a two-start week on Sunday.

This was reported on Sunday, so the Padres have now made the roster moves to make it official. Pivetta last appeared on an MLB mound on April 12th, throwing three scoreless innings against the Rockies before leaving with a flexor strain. He did throw 4 1/3 innings in his last rehab outing, but he’s been out for so long that fantasy managers should expect considerable rust in his first few appearances.

Pivetta was very effective in his last rehab start, striking out seven in 4 1/3 scoreless innings for El Paso. In the outing before that, though, he gave up two homers in three innings in A-ball. There’s little doubt he’d be making at least one more rehab start if we were still in June, but since we’re not, it’s worth giving him a try, especially with Vásquez available to throw several innings behind him if necessary. Pivetta seems pretty risky as a fantasy play, and he might not complete five innings and qualify for a win even if he’s effective.

The 33-year-old right-hander twirled 4 1/3 scoreless frames in his last minor league rehab start at Triple-A El Paso. He was scheduled to throw a bullpen at Petco Park over the weekend and as long as everything goes smoothly, it sounds like his next outing could come with the Padres. Whether he works out of the rotation or the bullpen down the stretch remains to be seen though.

Musgrove, trying to return from Tommy John, has been impressive when he’s been able to pitch, but he’s really struggled to bounce back afterwards. “We’re just trying to look at some different options -- shorter appearances, different theories,” Musgrove said. “I’m running out of answers.” Musgrove will likely take on a lesser workload in his next appearance, with the hope that he might bounce back more quickly. A return this season as a traditional starter appears to be off the table at this point.

The Padres appear to be pulling back on Musgrove’s throwing progression since he’s struggling to recover between starts and continues to experience fatigue in his arm and elbow. It’s not uncommon for a pitcher coming off major surgery, but the Padres don’t have the luxury of waiting around and giving him additional time with the postseason just a few weeks away. At this point, it’s challenging to envision a scenario where Musgrove comes back before the end of the regular season. He looked sharp during his latest minor league rehab start for Triple-A El Paso last Thursday. The 33-year-old veteran hasn’t pitched in the majors since the 2024 postseason.

Musgrove needed just 60 pitches to get through five frames and threw 70 percent of his pitches for strikes. He had just three whiffs on the day, but this has all the makings of a veteran in his final rehab start who was not really letting it fly. Musgrove has pitched well in the minors and seems healthy and can be added on waivers before his season debut next week.

Pivetta struck out four and walked one but also allowed two home runs while throwing 35 of his 47 pitches for strikes. We don’t have much data from High-A parks, but it’s nice to see that Pivetta threw as many strikes as he did and that he ended the outing healthy after having to walk off the mound the last time he was making a rehab start. He should move to Double-A or Triple-A for his next outing, which could come over the weekend.

Pivetta is running out of time to make it back to San Diego, but continues to make gradual progress after an injury scare earlier this month. The 33-year-old has been out with a flexor strain that sent him to the injured list back in mid-April. There’s a chance he makes it back to San Diego at some point in the final month of the year.

Musgrove’s timeline to return to San Diego’s rotation mix remains rather nebulous, but he figures to be ready to contribute at some point in the final month of the season. The 33-year-old is working his way back from Tommy John surgery and hasn’t pitched in a big-league contest since the 2024 postseason.