Tatis, Musgrove gain traction toward return

July 19th, 2024

CLEVELAND -- With the July 30 Trade Deadline looming, the Padres (as usual) remain one of sport’s more intriguing teams. Still, it’s difficult to envision them making any bigger additions to their roster than the ones they could be making in August.

During the All-Star break, the Padres got positive news on the recoveries of both Tatis (right femoral stress reaction) and Musgrove (right elbow inflammation).

Tatis, who has been sidelined since late June, underwent an MRI. The stress reaction hasn’t entirely healed, manager Mike Shildt said, but the MRI results were encouraging enough that Tatis has resumed some baseball activity.

“The MRI was favorable,” Shildt said. “It’s still there -- the actual stress reaction. But a lot of the swelling and the fluid is pretty well gone. That is obviously a positive, so he’s able to swing the bat and do some light lower-half exercises.”

Shildt noted that Tatis would undergo further imaging in the near future. Once the stress reaction has healed, Tatis’ full ramp-up will begin, and Shildt said he doesn’t anticipate Tatis needing much time to build back to game shape.

As for Musgrove, who hasn’t pitched since May because of elbow inflammation and triceps tendinitis caused by a bone spur, he threw his first bullpen session on Wednesday at Petco Park before accompanying the team to Cleveland.

Musgrove said his bullpen was mostly fastballs, though he plans to incorporate breaking pitches over the course of his next few bullpen sessions, which will take place during the Padres’ three-city trip through Cleveland, Washington and Baltimore.

This is Musgrove’s second stint on the IL this season with the same injury. His first was an abbreviated one and didn’t allow his elbow enough time to heal. This time, Musgrove received a PRP injection and took nearly a month away from throwing. He says he hasn’t felt any lingering issues in his buildup.

The season clearly hasn’t gone according to plan for Musgrove, who posted a 5.66 ERA in 10 starts amid the injuries. But if he can return in late August for the Padres’ postseason push, that still affords him time to make a difference.

“Obviously I never want to be on the IL,” Musgrove said. “You always try to manage it. But the decision to go on the IL was ultimately looking at where I could be the most impactful this season. And that’s down the stretch.”

Indeed, a healthy Musgrove and Tatis would go a long way toward improving the Padres’ chances of reaching the postseason -- and doing damage once they get there.

“That’s huge,” Shildt said. “You get guys like that? I feel pretty good about where we are relative to having [injuries]. Look, every club’s banged up, make no excuses. But let’s not kid ourselves -- we get Tati and Joe back, that’s a big lift for this club.”