San Diego

Padres

Musgrove missed essentially two years while battling through injuries and returned to pitch one inning at the end of September. The 33-year-old would figure to be a leading contender to have a spot in the rotation in 2027, but it seems like the Padres want to be certain of his health over the winter before deciding if they want to let him have a spot or bring in another starting option and keep Musgrove in a bullpen role.

Darvish had elbow surgery last season and missed the entire 2026 campaign. It sounds like, even if he feels 100 percent healthy, there is no guarantee that Darvish, who recently turned 40 years old, will return to MLB action. However, Stammen mentioned that Darvish has “been doing the work to at least give himself the option.”

The first time this injury cropped up publicly was at the beginning of August. Sheets played through the injury before finally landing on the injured list on August 30th and staying there for a month. Generally, plantar fasciitis is an injury that can heal with consecutive weeks or months of non-surgical treatments and rest, so this news doesn’t impact Sheets’ outlook too much for 2027. However, Stammen uses the term “for now” when discussing Sheets’ decision to now have surgery, which is a bit foreboding. If he doesn’t improve by December or January, he may be forced to opt for a surgical route, which could impact his status for next season.

The 31-year-old right-hander stated, “San Diego’s been—been incredible for me, and it’s all the way across the country from home... But now I feel like I have a—a second home on the West Coast, so it’s been awesome. And yeah, I hope to—hope to continue.” King holds a $28 million player option ($5 million buyout) for the 2027 season. He’s almost certain to opt out of that and land a multi-year deal with a much higher AAV. While the Padres will almost assuredly love to bring him back, there’s going to be plenty of competition for his services on the open market and they’ll need to ante up in order to put themselves in the mix.

As he did all year, Buehler kept the Padres in the game, which he exited with the score tied 1-1. He ended the regular season with a 4.63 ERA, but he was 9-6 anyway and the Padres were a particularly impressive 22-10 in his starts. One imagines they’ll have some interest in bringing him back in free agency this winter.

Garrett Mitchell prevented the homer. Machado didn’t have a great regular season, but he was the standout performer for the Padres this October, going 7-for-20 with a homer, two doubles and five walks. That was good for a 1.080 OPS, well ahead of Xander Bogaerts at .824 for the best mark on the team.

There’s no tomorrow if San Diego doesn’t win tonight. It’ll be another all-hands situation for the Padres after King went two innings to pick up a save in a must-win Game 3 to extend the best-of-five series while Mason Miller was away on paternity leave. The 31-year-old probably won’t be asked to get more than a handful of outs, but he could be a break-glass option if the Padres get in trouble in the middle innings.

Miller is available for a must-win Game 4 showdown in San Diego after missing Game 3 to be with his family for the birth of their first child. The hard-throwing 28-year-old’s return is even more critical with fellow high-leverage specialist Adrian Morejon a virtual gametime decision due to a shoulder issue.

Peralta’s stint on San Diego’s playoff roster lasted roughly 24 hours while All-Star closer Mason Miller was away from the club on paternity leave.

Buehler posted a 4.63 ERA, 1.35 WHIP, and 131/57 K/BB ratio in 153 2/3 innings for the Padres this season. He was better in the second half, registering a 3.62 ERA across 64 2/3 innings, and he has a good track record of postseason success with a 3.04 ERA and nearly 30 percent strikeout rate in 94 2/3 innings. The Padres will hope for another postseason gem from the 32-year-old.