- Righty Dinelson Lamet won’t rejoin the Padres’ rotation until he pitches at least one more time at their alternate site, Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune tweets. Lamet has been delayed while working back from elbow issues that brought a premature end to a breakout 2020 effort in which he put up a 2.09 ERA/3.16 SIERA in 69 innings and finished fourth in NL Cy Young voting. The Padres have roared to an 8-3 start without Lamet, but he should make the World Series hopefuls even more formidable upon his return.
Padres Rumors
Padres’ Adrian Morejon Placed On IL Due To Left Forearm Strain
TODAY: Morejón has been placed on the 10-day injured list with a left forearm strain. The Padres recalled righty Nabil Crismatt from the alternate training site to take Morejon’s spot on the active roster.
APRIL 11: Adrián Morejón left his start against the Rangers this afternoon in the first inning. The young left-hander has a forearm/elbow strain in his throwing arm, the Padres later told reporters (including Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune).
That’s an ominous sounding diagnosis, as forearm strains are often a precursor to Tommy John surgery. There’s no indication at this point Morejón will need to undergo that (or any other) procedure, but it seems he’ll require an injured list stint at the very least. Morejón, who broke into the majors as a swingman over the past two years, began this season as San Diego’s fifth starter.
While Morejón has only managed a 6.03 ERA over his first 31.1 MLB innings, a deeper look shows plenty more promise. The former high-profile international signee has been one of the game’s top prospects over the last four years, entering the season as Baseball America’s #75 overall farmhand. While Morejón has given up far too many home runs in his brief big league time, he’s also demonstrated an ability to miss bats and command the strike zone. His 26.1% strikeout rate, 12% swinging strike rate and 5.8% walk percentage are all better than league average, no small feat for a player who just turned 22 years old.
Should Morejón miss time, the Friars could turn to a handful of other young arms in his rotation spot until Dinelson Lamet is ready to return from injury. Top prospect MacKenzie Gore is widely expected to debut at some point in 2021, while former top ten pick Ryan Weathers already made his MLB debut and has been working out of the bullpen this year. Jordan Humphreys, whom the Padres claimed off waivers last month, is among the other starting pitcher options on the 40-man roster.
Padres Reinstate Austin Adams From 10-Day IL
- Right-hander Austin Adams has been reinstated from the Padres’ 10-day IL, and righty Nabil Crismatt has been optioned to the alternate training site to make room on the active roster. Adams had been suffering from a minor elbow strain during Spring Training. San Diego acquired Adams as part of their seven-player deal with the Mariners last August, and he stands out as a potentially nasty bullpen weapon if he can get his free passes in check. Adams has an eye-popping 70 strikeouts over 42 career innings in the majors, but control has also been a major issue (a 15.8% walk rate).
Latest On Fernando Tatis Jr.
As if Joe Musgrove’s no-hitter wasn’t enough good news for the Padres, Fernando Tatis Jr. was taking grounders prior to yesterday’s game and is now also taking part in hitting and running drills. Tatis is on the 10-day IL recovering from a slight tear in his left labrum, though the ugly-looking injury may only keep Tatis out of action for a relatively short amount of time. Tatis’ shoulder inflammation has decreased to the point that he has been able to do some fielding work, and he could keep gradually ramping up his baseball activity as long as his shoulder remains sound, Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune wrote yesterday.
Manager Jayce Tingler sounded cautiously optimistic talking to Acee and other reporters today. “We want to take it day by day, but we feel confident if we can continue down this road, we’re going to be in a good position for him to be activated” by April 16, Tingler said. That would be the first day Tatis would be eligible to leave the injured list, and it would put Tatis on pace to be in the lineup as the Padres began a big series with the Dodgers.
Padres Activate Trent Grisham
The Padres announced that they have reinstated center fielder Trent Grisham from the 10-day injured list. The team optioned outfielder Brian O’Grady to its alternate site in a corresponding move.
The Padres have so far gone without Grisham, who suffered a hamstring strain almost a full month ago (on March 11). They have primarily turned to Tommy Pham in center during Grisham’s absence, though the former hasn’t performed well in the early going.
San Diego acquired Grisham in a trade with Milwaukee before last season, and he ended up as one of the main reasons the Padres clinched their first playoff berth since 2006. Grisham played in 59 of the Padres’ 60 games, batted .251/.352/.456 (121 wRC+) with 10 home runs, 10 stolen bases and 2.3 fWAR in 252 plate appearances, and won a Gold Glove Award. The 24-year-old’s return should be all the more welcome for a position player group without shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. and catcher Austin Nola, who are on the IL.
Padres Place Fernando Tatis Jr. On 10-Day IL
Padres shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. exited their game against the Giants on Monday with what looked like a potentially disastrous left shoulder injury. The Padres found out Tuesday that Tatis suffered a “slight labrum tear” that will require a stint on the 10-day injured list, general manager A.J. Preller announced, though the results of his MRI were “pretty positive,” per Scott Miller of Bleacher Report. The Padres are recalling infielder/outfielder Brian O’Grady to fill Tatis’ roster spot.
It’s still not known how long Tatis will sit out, but the Padres don’t anticipate that he will need surgery. Preller told Bob Nightengale of USA Today and other reporters that there wouldn’t be any long-term risk in letting Tatis play again this year, and the Padres are hopeful he could return from the IL as soon as he’s eligible.
All things considered, it’s very encouraging news for the Padres, who signed Tatis to a 14-year, $340MM contract extension before the season. The 22-year-old burst on the scene with an outstanding performance from 2019-20, and though the Padres will miss him for as long as he’s out, they remain a highly talented team with an interesting shortstop substitute on hand. The team signed former Korea Baseball Organization Ha-Seong Kim to a four-year, $28MM deal in free agency, and he’ll start in Tatis’ place Tuesday.
Fernando Tatis Jr. Being Evaluated Following Shoulder Injury
April 6, 6:04pm: The Padres are “cautiously optimistic” about Tatis right now, Bob Nightengale of USA Today tweets. It’s still not clear how much time he will miss, though.
7:15am: The Padres’ initial diagnosis is a left shoulder subluxation, per a team announcement. Tatis will be further evaluated today.
April 5: Padres superstar shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. departed their game Monday against the Giants with an apparent left elbow injury, AJ Cassavell of MLB.com was among those to report. Tatis struck out in an at-bat against Giants right-hander Anthony DeSclafani and then went down “crumpled in a heap,” per Cassavell. Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area provided video on Twitter.
A serious injury to Tatis would not only be a massive loss for the Padres, who have World Series hopes this year, but the game of baseball as a whole. The 22-year-old was one of the most ballyhooed prospects in the sport before he reached the majors, and he has more than lived up to that status so far in the bigs. Dating back to his 2019 debut, Tatis has slashed .298/.372/.577 (148 wRC+) with 40 home runs, 27 stolen bases and 6.5 fWAR in just 147 games and 648 plate appearances. He’s among the main reasons the Padres look like an elite team on paper, not to mention one of baseball’s greatest talents.
Tatis has been so productive during his short career that the Padres signed him to a jaw-dropping 14-year, $340MM extension near the end of February. The Padres obviously did so with confidence that Tatis would stay healthy, but now they may be dealing with a disastrous scenario just a few games into his contract.
Padres Acquire James Norwood From Cubs
The Padres have acquired righty James Norwood from the Cubs in exchange for right-handed pitching prospect Dauris Valdez, as announced by both teams. Norwood has been optioned to San Diego’s alternate training site, and righty Javy Guerra has been moved to the 60-day injured list to create roster space.
Norwood had been designated for assignment by Chicago earlier this week. Debuting in 2018, Norwood has appeared in each of the last three MLB seasons, amassing a 4.50 ERA over 22 total innings (with 21 strikeouts and 14 walks) for the Cubs. Shoulder problems limited him to just three games and 1 2/3 frame of work in 2020. The hard-throwing Norwood has posted some pretty solid strikeout totals in the minors, though control has been an increasing issue as he has worked his way up the minor league ladder — Norwood had an unimpressive 13.65% walk rate over 75 1/3 career innings at Triple-A.
The trade is, in essence, a swap of power arms who have hard some trouble getting the ball over the plate. Like Norwood, Valdez has also had some control problems while moving up to higher levels of the minor leagues, posting a below-average 11.77% walk rate over 108 2/3 innings at the high-A and Double-A levels in 2018-19. This said, there’s still plenty of potential for the 25-year-old, who was ranked by MLB Pipeline as the No. 25 prospect in San Diego’s farm system. Valdez has a 65-grade fastball that “routinely hits triple-digits” according to Pipeline’s scouting report, and he also possesses a plus slider and a solid changeup as a third pitch.
Padres Notes: Grisham, Nola
- The Padres hope to have Trent Grisham back in center field when they travel to play the Rangers on April 9, manager Jayce Tingler told Jim Duquette of MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM (via Twitter). Grisham has been out of action since suffering a hamstring strain during a Spring Training game on March 11, though he did play in some simulated games at the end of camp. Austin Nola isn’t quite as far along in his rehab from a fractured left middle finger, but he could soon get some plate appearances at the Padres’ alternate training site.
Felony Charges Against Luis Campusano Dropped
Padres catcher Luis Campusano was arrested in Georgia last October on charges of felony marijuana possession, but the matter has been dropped. State prosecutors have elected against pursuing it further, citing an “issue of probable cause for the traffic stop,” Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports.
Police found 79 grams of marijuana on Campusano when they pulled him over. That checks in well above 28.5 grams, which is the state’s limit before it becomes a felony. He could have faced up to 10 years in prison had Georgia pursued the maximum penalty.
With this issue out of the way, the 22-year-old Campusano will be in line for playing time throughout 2021 and beyond with the World Series-hopeful Padres. He made the Padres’ Opening Day roster after Austin Nola suffered a fractured left middle finger, leaving Campusano as their main option behind Victor Caratini for the time being. Campusano will start for the team in its game against the Diamondbacks on Friday.
