Craig Stammen makes Padres fans face the hard truth about Nick Pivetta, Joe Musgrove

The Padres spent the offseason working to build some quality depth for their starting rotation. They had Nick Pivetta and Michael King at the top and signed Walker Buehler, along with other options like Randy Vasquez and JP Sears. Then the depth pieces were pitchers like Griffin Canning and German Marquez. They also signed Lucas Giolito in late April, and he made his debut a few weeks ago. 

Giolito is now hurt, though manager Craig Stammen said it looks like they caught it early and it may not be a long-term issue. But the reinforcements that people keep discussing, like Pivetta, who went on the IL in mid-April, and Joe Musgrove, coming back from Tommy John surgery at the end of 2024, might not be that close to a return.

Craig Stammen tempers the Nick Pivetta, Joe Musgrove return timeline

Here’s the good news. Pivetta and Musgrove are throwing again, which is huge. PIvetta has been building back from his flexor strain injury. He resumed playing catch in late May and was known to be stretching it out past 90 feet earlier this month. Musgrove is still grinding his way back after a spring setback, which scrapped his Opening Day plans. But both are long-tossing, and both are reportedly stretched out to around 210 feet.

Stammen didn’t throw cold water on their return, but did want to promote just a little of patience. He made sure to say that they still had a long way to go, even though getting out there for long toss is a good sign. But there’s still plenty of progression. They still need to get to bullpens, then live batting practice, then games, and then build up to a full workload. But he was happy with their progress and mentioned that they are feeling pain-free, which is a plus.

It may be disappointing not to have a date in mind, but for a guy who pitched so long in the big leagues, laying out the steps from throwing the ball on flat ground to building up to 100 pitches is good knowledge to have. There are multiple things between today and their return to the mound, but they’re at least on the road to that, and it sure sounded like Stammen wanted to be sure to set the expectation to the fanbase.

Good on him for it. Whenever a pitcher, or any player really, gets hurt, the instinct is to start the countdown. You find out the length of time to miss and then figure out the date he might be back on the mound. But Stammen isn’t going to feed into that. He knows, more than most, that every pitcher is different. Arms are non-linear, and setbacks happen. The difference between no pain while playing catch at 2pm is very different than no pain in the fifth inning of a 2-1 game. Pivetta is the ace they need. Realistically, he’s probably looking at sometime after the break. Musgrove is a different story. We just don’t know what he’ll be able to give.

The timing on the Giolito injury would be funny if not for the absurdity of another injury. He was signed specifically because the rotation needed help, and now they need help for the help. Again, Stammen didn’t seem too worried about it, saying he’d be shut down for just a couple of days before he builds back up, but he’s still out for at least a couple of weeks. And given his injury history, you just never know. Sears will come up. Marquez is on a rehab assignment. Canning has an ERA over seven.

Right now, the stakes are huge. Through play on Tuesday, the Padres were four games over .500, and nine games back in the division, but tied for the final Wild Card spot with the Chicago Cubs. While Buehler has been a pleasant surprise, Vasquez has slid some, and they’re just fighting to find guys to keep them in games with an offense that has shown a few flashes over the last week and a half, but is still struggling. Pivetta and Musgrove are the season’s great internal hope. They’re both really good (if right) and don’t cost anything to bring in. It’s just worth remembering the reminder that the cavalry is still saddling up. They’re on their way back, but it might be a bit before we see them in the brown and gold. 

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