![\"Joe](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/SUT-L-sptrain-014.jpg\")
Joe Musgrove #44 of the San Diego Padres pitches against the Great Britain during their spring training game at Peoria Sports Complex on Wednesday, March 4, 2026 in Peoria, Ariz. (Meg McLaughlin \/ The San Diego Union-Tribune)<\/p>\nPEORIA, Ariz. \u2014 It was a start.<\/p>\n
Joe Musgrove returned to a major league mound (sort of) to face another team (sort of) for the first time since he walked off the mound in Game 3 of the 2024 Wild Card Series and had Tommy John surgery nine days later.<\/p>\n
\u201cPitch count, three innings, getting the feel of the pitch clock a little bit,\u201d Musgrove said of what he took away from a 60-pitch outing in an exhibition against Great Britain\u2019s World Baseball Classic team on Wednesday. \u201cOverall, a good step forward.\u201d<\/p>\n
It is not whitewashing anything to say that is all that was expected from Musgrove on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe journey that Joe has been on that led him up to this point has been pretty awesome to watch from behind the scenes,\u201d Padres manager Craig Stammen said before the game. \u201cJust knowing what he\u2019s been putting into it every single day to be at his best, no matter how today goes, it\u2019s going to be a positive step forward.\u201d<\/p>\n
There are also plenty of questions about what he will be in 2026, a season in which the Padres likely need him to be close to the often-dominant starter he was for them from 2021 through \u201824. Those questions will linger through the spring and likely continue into the season and perhaps all the way to October.<\/p>\n
\u201cJoe is capable of being the best pitcher in the National League,\u201d Stammen said. \u201cThe way he puts work in, his attention to detail. We\u2019ve seen other pitchers come back from Tommy John and have spectacular seasons. I\u2019m not going to put that past Joe. Now, is that a 100% chance that is going to happen? No. But I know we\u2019re going to get a very good version of Joe Musgrove.\u201d<\/p>\n
On Wednesday, Musgrove averaged 94.2 mph with his four-seam fastball, right around where he has been most games since becoming a full-time starting pitcher in 2018. His big struggle was overcoming the same challenge most pitchers face after a long layoff.<\/p>\n
\u201cI liked the shapes of my stuff,\u201d he said. \u201cJust command-wise, a little bit off where I need to be.\u201d<\/p>\n
Joe Musgrove #44 of the San Diego Padres pitches against the Great Britain during their spring training game at Peoria Sports Complex on Wednesday, March 4, 2026 in Peoria, Ariz. (Meg McLaughlin \/ The San Diego Union-Tribune)<\/p>\n
Musgrove, who said he felt a bit rushed by the pitch clock, threw 36 strikes (60%) overall and was able to count just two strikes among his 12 curveballs. As usual at this point in spring, his pitch sequencing was not at all like what\u2019s expected in the regular season. He said he just to see how certain pitches played.<\/p>\n
The metrics on all his pitches, including spin and movement, were in line with previous seasons.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt didn\u2019t feel like anything crazy,\u201d Musgrove said of being on the mound in a spring training stadium for the first time in two years. \u201cTo me, this is like another step. I think getting in a big-league game and facing big-league hitters in a big stadium, night game, things like that will be another adjustment. But for me, this was just still kind of checking boxes and building up. I\u2019m not putting too much value into how I do in these outings. It\u2019s just kind of reminding myself of what the big-league flow is like and kind of getting familiar with things again.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"Joe](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/SUT-L-sptrain-019.jpg\")
Joe Musgrove #44 of the San Diego Padres walks to the dugout after being pulled from the Friars\u2019 spring training game against the Great Britain at Peoria Sports Complex on Wednesday, March 4, 2026 in Peoria, Ariz. (Meg McLaughlin \/ The San Diego Union-Tribune)<\/p>\n
The biggest adjustment for Musgrove this spring has been the urgency. Wednesday was his first time in a game, but he had thrown multiple live batting practices and nearly three innings (36 pitches) in a simulated game.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt has felt a little bit fast, in a sense,\u201d he said. \u201cor the last year, it has pretty much just been at my pace and as we need to go. \u2026 (Spring has been) a little bit faster pace as far as, like, throw a game, get on the mound for a pen, get back in the game, throw a pen, back in the game. So learning a little bit as I go here, figuring out my body.\u201d<\/p>\n
Musgrove had thrown 26 pitches, walked a batter, allowed two singles and gotten one out when he was replaced by Johan Moreno in the first inning. Musgrove returned to work a 23-pitch second inning, allowing one more single. He surrendered another single between a groundout and strikeout in the third inning before being pulled for good.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I got the ball from him the last time, the smile that he had on his face and the sense of, like, \u2018I did it, I got back,\u2019 was pretty cool to see,\u201d Stammen said. \u201cAnd I know this is only the beginning. He\u2019s got a lot ahead of him, and we\u2019re excited to see it.\u201d<\/p>\n
How good the Padres feel about Musgrove\u2019s results next month and the month after and on through what they hope is a postseason run is simply unpredictable.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s a broad question,\u201d Musgrove said when asked about his expectations. \u201cI\u2019d like to stay healthy all year. Expectations are different. Desires, I\u2019ve got a lot of those. I haven\u2019t really put many expectations on myself other than to just go out and compete. I feel like I\u2019m one of the best at going out and competing regardless of what I got.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"Joe](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/SUT-L-sptrain-026.jpg\")
Joe Musgrove #44 of the San Diego Padres takes a moment before their spring training game against Great Britain at Peoria Sports Complex on Wednesday, March 4, 2026 in Peoria, Ariz. (Meg McLaughlin \/ The San Diego Union-Tribune)<\/p>\n
No one who has paid attention can question Musgrove\u2019s resolve. His work ethic is unquestioned.<\/p>\n
The 33-year-old right-hander has toiled maniacally to get back from injuries in the past, and he pitched in 2024 knowing his elbow would eventually give out and that it could happen at any time. Unlike virtually every player going through rehab from a major surgery, Musgrove spent last season around the team at home and on the road so he could help out with his fellow starting pitchers and contribute as a voice in the clubhouse.<\/p>\n
But while it has become fairly normal for pitchers to return as good as ever after their recovery from Tommy John, it is by no means a guarantee. Just returning to previous form sometimes takes a while.<\/p>\n
Some recent top-line pitchers have had varying degrees of success.<\/p>\n
Justin Verlander, who had already won two Cy Young awards, came back from his 2020 Tommy John surgery to win a third one in 2022 after missing the \u201821 season.<\/p>\n
Sandy Alcantara, a Cy Young winner in \u201822, had Tommy John surgery in October 2023. His return last year saw him throw a whopping 174\u2154 innings. But his notoriously excellent command was largely absent early on, and he had an 8.47 ERA in his first 11 starts before posting a 4.08 ERA over his final 20 starts.<\/p>\n
Shane Bieber, a Cy Young winner in 2020, returned from his 2024 TJ last August and posted a 3.57 ERA in seven starts and worked almost 20 innings in the postseason. But his spring has been delayed due to forearm soreness.<\/p>\n
Musgrove has not won a Cy Young award, but he did rank among MLB\u2019s best in ERA and strikeout rate from 2021 to \u201824.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve seen guys be really good,\u201d said Musgrove, who has altered his delivery to use his lower body more and take pressure off his arm. \u201cI\u2019ve talked to a lot of guys that say that they don\u2019t feel normal or they don\u2019t feel back to themselves till about that two-year mark. So I\u2019ve got all these things that I\u2019m aware of. But I\u2019m not really trying to put myself into one of those classes right now. I\u2019m kind of just taking the ball every fifth day and see how I recover and adjust as we go. I\u2019d like to come back and be able to stay healthy and make my starts. I don\u2019t expect to (pitch) 180, 200 innings, but I expect to be able to take the ball consistently throughout the year and be productive.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"PEORIA, Ariz. \u2014 It was a start. Joe Musgrove returned to a major league mound (sort of) to…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":606743,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2407],"tags":[5,853,4,43,137,18,4339,4338,185,3546],"class_list":{"0":"post-606742","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-san-diego-padres","8":"tag-baseball","9":"tag-latest-headlines","10":"tag-mlb","11":"tag-padres","12":"tag-san-diego","13":"tag-san-diego-padres","14":"tag-sandiego","15":"tag-sandiegopadres","16":"tag-sports","17":"tag-top-stories-sdut"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@mlb\/116173914640620889","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/606742","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=606742"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/606742\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/606743"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=606742"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=606742"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=606742"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}