Biggest Unresolved Concern for the Padres Before Opening Day

Heading into the 2026 season, the San Diego Padres are being viewed as a middle-tiered team in the National League. After going to the playoffs last season and in four of the last six years, San Diego has one major question mark this year.

The starting group is easily the biggest concern for this club heading into 2026, and it could be a problem, especially early in the year.

San Diego lost ace Dylan Cease to free agency, which was a massive blow to their overall pitching depth. The Padres will also be without starter Yu Darvish for the season after he underwent elbow surgery.

And to make matters worse for the team, right-hander Joe Musgrove won't be available to start the season after dealing with an injury setback in his Tommy John recovery.

Cease, Darvish and Musgrove have been at the center of the Padres' starting rotation for the last few years, so tthis leaves a major hole for the team. Luckily, the front office was able to bring back right-hander Michael King in free agency, but he's off to a very slow start this spring. Nick Pivetta has struggled, too.

The offense and bullpen are going to need to carry this team, at least for the first part of the year. But the issues around the rotation aren't going away, and this could be an area that the Padres address closer to the trade deadline — or potentially even sooner.

Padres 2026 Starting Rotation

With all the injuries and lack of arms, the Padres rotation has a lot of questions. Right now, Nick Pivetta, Michael King and Randy Vásquez are locked into starting spots.

Musgrove will be given a spot once he returns from injury, but his timetable is unclear right now. That leaves one or two spots that the Padres have a handful of pitchers compete for in spring training.

Who is Competing For the Final Rotation Spots?

Walker Buehler, Triston McKenzie, Germán Márquez, Marco Gonzales and JP Sears have been vying for the role. Buehler may have an upper hand, but nothing has been confirmed by the team.

San Diego may not bring a fifth starter into the fold early in the year, and instead allow their bullpen to take on the role. The big strength of the Padres this season is the bullpen, and they should have more than enough arms to get through the first part of the year until Musgrove is able to return.

Either way, the Padres want to start the new year strong, and there is confidence within the club, even with all the rotation issues. With a new manager and an aging core, the pressure is on this team to find success this season, even with the odds stacked against them.

San Diego opens the season on March 26 at home against reigning back-to-back Cy Young award winner Tarik Skubal and the Detroit Tigers. At this point, the Padres are yet to name an Opening Day starter.