Jake

Cronenworth

Cronenworth has been sidelined since May 5 and is definitely still weeks away. He might return as a utilityman if the Padres want to keep playing Fernando Tatis Jr. at second base.

It’s a bit unclear when Cronenworth suffered a concussion recently but he’s headed to the injured list with Sung-Mun Song coming up to take his roster spot.

Stammen added that Machado is dealing with a left calf cramp that led to his precautionary exit from the late stages of Monday’s contest against Chicago. The 33-year-old third baseman will get some extra time off to rest and recover out of an abundance of caution, but it sounds like he’s ready if needed to pinch-hit. It certainly sounds like a relatively minor concern at this juncture. Jake Cronenworth is at the hot corner in his absence with Fernando Tatis Jr. making his fifth appearance at second base this season.

It’s an extremely rare day off for Machado following a precautionary exit from Monday’s series opener due to a left leg issue. Jake Cronenworth takes over at the hot corner for the first time in his career with Fernando Tatis Jr. making another start at second base. It doesn’t appear to be a significant concern, but that Padres are going to give Machado a little extra time off to rest and recover.

The 27-year-old superstar proved to be capable at the position on Saturday and it appears as though it could become a regular thing going forward — which would be a boon to his already high fantasy value. Jake Cronenworth and Gavin Sheets are both sitting against Rockies’ left-hander Kyle Freeland on Sunday.

The Padres decided at the end of the spring to go with Cronenworth as their leadoff man against righties, but that lasted just three games. He’s hit sixth, eighth, ninth and ninth in the Padres’ most recent games against right-handers, and he finished tonight with a .162/.262/.189 line and one RBI in 42 plate appearances. Still, there’s definitely no sitting him now, as Ty France is the closest thing the Padres have to a backup second baseman with the way the roster is currently constructed. Sung-Mun Song will eventually take over that role, but since he’s another lefty, he’s not someone who can platoon with Cronenworth.

The 32-year-old infielder drew a two-out walk in the third inning and was left stranded there. He then smacked a single into left field in the fifth and swiped second base, but the Padres were unable to cash him in. He’s having a solid spring at the dish, hitting .375 (9-for-24) with a homer, three RBI and a stolen base.

The Padres seem pretty comfortable with a 2-3-4 of Jackson Merrill, Manny Machado, and Fernando Tatis Jr., but the leadoff hitter spot has not been solidified yet by new manager Craig Stammen. If true, this would be a small boost for Cronenworth’s value — he would see the majority of the at-bats in a good lineup and could significantly bump his run total in 2026.

Arraez is on the bench with Ryan O’Hearn taking over at the cold corner and Jake Cronenworth at the keystone following a scary incident prior to the ninth inning of Saturday’s game when he was struck in the side of the face by an errant warmup throw. It’s a significant concern because he missed time back in April with a concussion. The 28-year-old contact-oriented infielder will undergo further evaluation this weekend, but there’s optimism he’ll be fine since he didn’t lose consciousness during the incident. There should be some clarity on his status prior to Tuesday’s pivotal game against the Mets.

It’s Cronenworth’s first start at shortstop since the late stages of the 2022 season. The 31-year-old has mostly played second base this year with 104 appearances at the keystone and just 15 appearances combined elsewhere.