The Padres overcame their sluggish early season swing to finish April with a solid 19-11 record. Their starting lineup should improve over the next few weeks, which could lead to some decisions for the front office.
Griffin Canning he seems assured of a place on the rotation once he returns from last summer’s ACL tear. Canning took five rehab starts with Triple-A El Paso. He went five innings and 68 pitches on Tuesday. Pitchers can spend up to 30 days in minor league rehabilitation. Canning began his rehab assignment on April 4. He could make one more Triple-A start but should be active early next week.
Lucas Giolito he is not far behind. The righty agreed to an option that would build after signing a one-year deal on April 22. That was subject to a 25-day recall. He will be on the MLB roster by mid-May at the earliest. Giolito made his second start for Low-A Lake Elsinore tonight, throwing 70 pitches over 4 1/3 frames. He may not need the full 25 day window.
None of San Diego’s five starters could be selected. Michael King he’s not going anywhere, either Randy Vásquez He knocked his place down in a very nice April. Walker Buehler, German Marquezagain Matt Waldron it’s three pitchers trying to hold down rotation spots.
Márquez will take the ball tomorrow to open the weekend series against the White Sox. King and Vásquez put together this set. The Friars have not listed a possible starter for next week’s road series at San Francisco – which could be Buehler and Waldron’s chance if they stay in their current lineup.
Buehler has a 5.40 earned run average through six starts. He gets ground balls but has a low 7.8% swing rate and has walked just once in five innings. Márquez will make his sixth start of the year on Friday. He has two scoreless games but has allowed four runs in his three games and seems to be struggling with the home run.
Knuckleballer Waldron was blown out by the Angels and Rockies in his first start of the season. He had a very competitive but not so good game against the Cubs yesterday, giving up three runs over five innings. The out-of-options righty has struck out eight of 69 batters (11.6%) since returning from the shortstop.
Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune floated the possibility that the Friars could rotate with six men or use openers/tandem starts on days when King doesn’t ride. They were out today but will be playing for 10 days in a row starting tomorrow. After a day off on May 11, they will play nine games in a row.
Of course, going back to a six-man rotation or starting a tandem would necessitate dropping into a seven-man fold. San Diego is selected David Morgan tonight, according to MLB.com’s transaction tracker. They haven’t announced a parallel move and it looks like they’re going to work Yuki Matsui from his groin injury in the season opener tomorrow. Jeremiah Estrada started a rehab stint this week.
The Padres can option Kyle Hart to clear one active list field. The only other reliever option (besides Mason Miller) is a hard-throwing rookie Bradley Rodriguezwho has three catches and has allowed just three runs over 14 1/3 innings. It can be difficult to send down. They hold the exit options Ron Marinaccio the whole season. He allowed 10 runs over 16 2/3 innings of innings.
There is no defined timeline open Joe Musgrove or Nick Pivetta. The former hasn’t even started off the mound after a setback in his recovery from elbow surgery. Pivetta went down with a flexor strain a few weeks ago and could be out for months.
