San Diego Padres’ Joey Lucchesi Re-Assigned to Minors

The San Diego Padres have re-assigned Lucchesi back to the minor leagues, ending any chances he may have had at making the Opening Day rotation.

Joey Lucchesi will not be on the San Diego Padres’ Opening Day roster. As of yesterday, he has been re-assigned to the minors. The news was somewhat expected given Tyson Ross’ recent emergence, as well as his experience.

Luis Perdomo did just enough to keep his spot in the rotation. The Padres’ starting five will mostly be Clayton Richard, Dinelson Lamet, Luis Perdomo, Tyson Ross, and Bryan Mitchell. Wait for an official announcement from the San Diego Padres tomorrow.

Joey Lucchesi has looked remarkable on the mound in spring training.

Joey Lucchesi had a remarkable spring training. The 24-year-old lefty deserved the starting spot more than anyone else on this team.

In the eleven and odd innings that he pitched, he struck out nine, walked two and yielded a miserly ERA of 1.54 with a WHIP of 0.86.

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Lucchesi going back to the minors is mostly a business decision. If Lucchesi doesn’t start with the Padres until the first seventeen-days, he will not get credit for a full season, as per MLB’s Super Two rules.

This will come to play when the southpaw eventually hits free agency in a few years. The Padres have long-term plans for Lucchesi, hence this move is not all that surprising.

As soon as his Super Two status expires, as long as he’s performing well and there’s an opening on the big-league roster, we should expect to see him in San Diego well before season’s end.

If anyone in the rotation should falter, or get injured, after Chris Young (who’s expected to start the year as the team’s long-man), Lucchesi should be considered the next man up.

Next: Roster Decisions Trickling Out of Peoria

Look out for Joey Lucchesi to be playing Major League Baseball for the San Diego Padres very soon!