Joe Musgrove's return to Padres' starting rotation could cause more harm than good

Joe Musgrove is scheduled to make his return to the San Diego Padres starting rotation on Monday. But this may not be the best idea given the injury concerns surrounding the the Padres right-hander.

Of course, Pads fans are excited to see Musgrove back on the bump. While Michael King and Dylan Cease have held down the fort in his absence, most of Friar faithful feel as though having Musgrove back in the rotation will be key to the Padres' postseason success.

Under normal circumstances, that argument would definitely hold water. From 2021-2023, Musgrove is 31-19 with a 3.05 ERA and 128 ERA+. Java Joe went to the All-Star Game in 2022, and even in limited starts last season, was arguably the Padres' best pitcher. But Musgrove has a lingering injury that will undoubtedly impact his performance once he's back on the hill Monday night against his former team, the Pittsburgh Pirates.

San Diego Padres RHP Joe Musgrove is altering his delivery upon his return from the IL

According to the San Diego Union Tribune, Musgrove has altered his delivery in order to offset the injury he's been dealing with for the past two-plus months. Musgrove has bone spurs in his elbow, and to lessen the stress on his arm he'll be reliant on his legs.

Musgrove has made just one rehab start this month, going 3 1/3 innings against the Fresno Grizzlies of the California League. Forgive us, but one outing against a Low-A in which Musgrove threw just 43 pitches shouldn't exactly instill confidence in the Padres' fanbase or coaching staff.

It remains to be seen what version of Musgrove Pads fans will see when the 31-year-old toes the rubber against the Buccos on Monday night at Petco Park. Musgrove's 2024 campaign has been rather dreadful to this point with a 3-4 record, 5.66 ERA and 1.48 WHIP in 10 starts.

Padres fans are hopeful to see the best version of Musgrove when he's back in the big leagues, but there's a chance that his return could cause more harm than good — both to him and the Padres.

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