Padres' Joe Musgrove Takes First Big Step Toward Return

The San Diego Padres have been missing starting pitcher Joe Musgrove all year after he suffered a setback in his recovery from Tommy John surgery during the spring.

Musgrove had been expected to be one of the bigger contributors for the San Diego starting rotation this year after missing the entire 2025 season. But even after the setback occurred, not many could have foreseen him being out this long.

The right-hander has been working to get back on the mound, but his elbow just hasn't functioned in the manner that he has wanted. But the veteran has now taken a big step forward in terms of recovery, with Musgrove throwing his first bullpen session since he was shut down months ago.

“It was pretty much fastballs only,” Musgrove said to the San Diego Union-Tribune. “I threw a couple of my other [pitches], but mainly just like a 80% touch-and-feel kind of bullpen.”

This is the first step for any pitcher to return from injury, but there is still no firm timeline for him to come back. The right-hander also started participating in fielding practice, another sign that he is getting closer to a return.

The Padres appear hopeful that he can come back to rejoin the team sometime in August, but at this point, nothing is set in stone.

Both sides have been taking a patient approach to the entire process, giving Musgrove plenty of time to fully heal. The last thing that either party wants is for the veteran to come back too quickly, only to re-injure himself.

“If we were gonna bounce a ball, that bouncing of the elbow is where I get a lot of pain,” Musgrove said last month. “And to be able to throw a ball with good intensity and be able to spin the ball and put the ball where I want location-wise, I need to be able to bounce the elbow and lock it out hard. That’s been the biggest struggle for me over the last couple months."

Before he went down in 2024, Musgrove had been one of the better pitchers for the Padres, posting an ERA of 3.88 over 19 starts. He made his first and only All-Star team in 2022, his second year with San Diego.

Musgrove will continue throwing bullpen sessions before he gets to a point where he can face live hitters. Then, he'll likely do that a couple times before going out on a rehab assignment. He'll almost certainly make a handful of rehab appearances before finally returning to San Diego.

Starter Nick Pivetta also remains out with an elbow injury, but he has been said to be a few weeks ahead of Musgrove in the recovery process. The two starters will give this pitching staff a massive boost upon their eventual returns, bolstering the group for a potential late-season playoff run.

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