Ryan Weathers shows San Diego Padres plenty in fill-in starts

If this truly was the last start for Ryan Weathers before Joe Musgrove's return from injury, the southpaw showed the San Diego Padres plenty before sliding out of the rotation. However, with Musgrove's return date now up in the air, Weathers may be needed a bit longer than expected.

Weathers allowed just three hits and one run over 5.0 innings of work on Tuesday night in his second start of the season, this time coming in Queens against the New York Mets. He also worked his way out of a first-inning jam that set the tone for the San Diego Padres early.

The 89-pitch performance on Tuesday comes on the heels of his April 3 home outing against the Arizona Diamondbacks when he also went 5.0 innings and allowed five hits and two runs. Both have been solid outings for a Padres team that needed someone to step into Musgrove's shoes after his toe injury suffered during a spring training accident with weights.

There was talk that Tuesday could have been the last start for Weathers before Musgrove's return. However, a shoulder injury suffered by Musgrove during a fielding play in Triple-A El Paso may delay that return. Padres manager Bob Melvin told reporters in New York that Musgrove may indeed need another rehab start now with the shoulder setback. The Padres will likely know more later in the week but, if Musgrove isn't ready to return to San Diego just yet, look for Weathers to get another start on Sunday in the home series finale against the Milwaukee Brewers.

If that is indeed the case, Weathers has already shown that, thanks to an offseason tweak in his windup, he is more than capable of helping the Padres, another good sign for the team early in the 2023 campaign.