Inbox: Will Gore follow Patiño to Padres?

SAN DIEGO -- Through two weeks, the 2020 season has been a mixed bag for the Padres. Fernando Tatis Jr. has been breathtaking as usual, and the San Diego rotation has thus far been excellent. But the ‘pen has faltered, Eric Hosmer is on the IL and Manny Machado is struggling.

After a 7-6 start comes the first breather. Thursday marks the team's only off-day across the first 31 days of the season. What better time for a Padres Inbox?

With Luis Patiño called up, what is the timeline for MacKenzie Gore?
-- @cook17

Luis Patiño and Mackenzie Gore have been lumped together so frequently, this question is only natural. If Patiño is in the big leagues, why not Gore? The Padres' two vaunted front-line pitching prospects have taken the same path, and Gore is ahead of Patiño on nearly every prospect ranking.

But the Padres don’t concern themselves with those rankings. Their thinking is simple: Patiño earned a spot on their pitching staff; Gore hasn't yet. Patiño was one of the standout performers during Summer Camp. Gore, meanwhile, struggled to find the strike zone.

That's not to say the Padres think any less of Gore's future. He's merely started slowly after a four-month layoff. Gore is a 21-year-old with a nasty four-pitch mix and a huge ceiling. But he needs to pitch his way into the big leagues. Right now, Gore is part of a group of prospects -- which notably also includes breakout prospect Ryan Weathers -- who are options to be called up later this season if they perform at the alternate training site.

Will Patiño start at some point this season?
-- Eric

Patiño surrendered a Joc Pederson homer in his debut on Wednesday night, but was otherwise solid following an excellent Summer Camp. If he continues to impress, the 20-year-old rookie will almost certainly be given a start at some point.

Patiño's first few starts might look different from the rest of them. The Padres envision Patiño as a workhorse at the front of their rotation in the future. But if he starts in 2020, he would probably do so in a shorter burst -- perhaps only a time or two through the opposing batting order.

When Eric Hosmer comes back, does Jake Cronenworth move to second base/designated hitter? Have to keep his hot bat in the lineup.
-- Willie P., Murrieta, Calif.

The Padres remain hopeful that Hosmer will return from his bout with gastritis on Saturday, which would be the first day that he's eligible to return from the IL. That would create quite the logjam at second base.

But you pretty much nailed it. If Cronenworth continues swinging the bat like he has thus far, he's got a place in the lineup against right-handed pitching. With his excellent glove, he won't be at DH. Cronenworth seems poised to take over the bulk of the second-base reps once Hosmer returns.

The question is whether the lefty-hitting Cronenworth would start against left-handed pitching. That seems unlikely. Jurickson Profar, a switch-hitter, is significantly better against lefties. If his struggles continue, fellow rookie Jorge Mateo might be called upon to platoon with Cronenworth.

Do you see Joey Lucchesi being a long reliever instead of a starter?
-- Brady, Cupertino, Calif.

It's telling that Lucchesi has been a fringe rotation candidate for years, yet the Padres have never experimented with him as a long man. Not in the Minors. Not during Spring Training. Not in the big leagues.

The Padres clearly view Lucchesi primarily as a starter. He's off to a slow start and had his turn skipped because of Thursday's off-day. But he's still a starter.

And maybe that's fine. Best-case scenario, Lucchesi is probably as a back-end rotation piece. Worst-case, he's probably a depth starting option. Generally speaking, successful teams need more than five capable starting pitchers anyway.

What do the Padres do at the catching position going forward?
-- Andy B.

Right now, there’s not much they can do. But if the struggles from Austin Hedges and Francisco Mejía persist, surely the Padres will need to do something.

They currently lead the Majors with 72 runs, so the Padres have some cover for their glaring hole at catcher, where Hedges and Mejía have combined to bat .098. The current plan is to keep giving that duo opportunity in hopes of a breakout.

If that doesn't happen, a trade is possible, though unlikely. (There aren’t many ready-made catching options available on the trade market.) But Luis Torrens impressed during camp and remains at the team's alternate site. No. 4 prospect Luis Campusano might be a longshot roster option as well.