It has been quite a rocky few months for the San Diego Padres and their fanbase. Fans watched as a questionable call led to their season ending at the hands of the Chicago Cubs in the Wild Card. 

With the season over, it was up to the front office to figure out which direction the team wanted to go. They missed out on retaining Dylan Cease, which is not ideal, but they were able to strike a deal with Michael King. 

However, with Yu Darvish being out for the 2026 season, it puts pressure on some of these other arms to perform. Someone like Joe Musgrove must step up and avoid injury and have a solid season. 

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Padres’ Joe Musgrove faces a ton of pressure after a lost 2025 season

Joe Musgrove did not pitch at all during the 2025 season. He underwent Tommy John surgery in October of 2024 and spent the last year rehabbing. 

Now, he comes into the season needing to be one of the frontline guys. MLB.com’s Thomas Harrigan puts the pressure on Musgrove to make up for lost time.

“Coming off Tommy John surgery, Musgrove looms as one of the rotation’s swing factors. The 33-year-old owns a 3.20 ERA in a Padres uniform, but he has made just 36 starts in the first three seasons of the five-year, $100 million extension he signed in August ’22.”

That is a lot of pressure to put on someone who has made only 36 starts over the last three seasons. That is also a lot to put on someone who has been on the injured list consistently since the 2023 season. 

Hopefully, the hard-throwing righty can stay away from the injury bug and help his club win games in 2026. If not, it could be quite a long season for the Padres and their fanbase.

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