Joe Musgrove makes Padres’ roster for Wild Card

Pretty incredible. Musgrove was a surprising addition to the Padres’ playoff roster, and received a roaring ovation from the San Diego crowd when he entered for the final inning. He struck out the first batter he faced since 2024 on a curveball, and while he then gave up two singles and free pass, the 33-year-old was able to get the next two outs. It’ll be interesting to see how the Padres use Musgrove going forward, as the stuff did look good.

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.

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.

There was some thought that Musgrove would come off the IL this weekend, but that he gave up five runs in his last rehab start seemed to put the kibosh on that. It sounds like he’ll pitch again in the minors before getting a rotation spot.

Musgrove is expected to make his next rehab start Friday for Triple-A El Paso. The right-hander could return to the Padres’ rotation shortly after, but may need one more rehab outing before that can happen.

Musgrove hasn’t pitched in a game since Game 2 of the 2024 Wild Card Series against the Braves. He left that game injured and underwent Tommy John surgery a week later. During spring training this year, he experienced a setback with his elbow that delayed his recovery. It wasn’t until July that he started to face live hitters again, but he looked good in his last rehab start, throwing 1.6 mph harder than he did in 2024. He’ll likely need two more rehab starts, but he could be an option for the Padres and fantasy managers in September.

Musgrove, making his way back from Tommy John, averaged 94.6 mph with his fastball, which is really encouraging. He averaged 93.0 mph in his 19 starts in 2024, and his career high for a season was 93.5 mph in 2018. He threw 53 pitches today, so he’ll probably need at least one more rehab start. However, the uptick in his stuff makes him worth stashing in mixed leagues now.

The 33-year-old right-hander continues to progress in his recovery from Tommy John reconstructive elbow surgery. He threw 39 pitches his last time out at Single-A Lake Elsinore on Tuesday, so anticipate him throwing around 50-60 pitches this time out. Barring any setbacks, he could be ready to join the Padres’ rotation at the end of August.