San Diego Padres DVOA, Stats, & MLB Rankings

San Diego Padres right-hander Joe Musgrove (elbow) has been traveling with the big-league team after starting to play catch again in early April. Musgrove is playing catch three times a week and is scheduled to progress from 75 feet to 90 feet this week, according to MLB.com. The 32-year-old veteran is recovering from Tommy John surgery to fix a torn right UCL. He was placed on the 60-day injured list on March 20 and will miss the entire 2025 season for the Padres and fantasy managers. Before injuring his elbow last year, Musgrove was no longer a reliable fantasy starter and posted a 6.37 ERA in his first eight starts. He looked better in two starts after returning, but that was the extent of his season before having to undergo TJ surgery. With better health, Musgrove could bounce back in 2026, but it's no sure thing at his age.

San Diego Padres right-hander Matt Waldron (oblique) made a minor-league rehab start in the rookie-level Arizona Complex League on May 15 and could move to Double-A San Antonio for his next rehab start. Waldron suffered a left-oblique strain while warming up in the bullpen before a spring training game and was moved to the 60-day injured list (retroactive to March 24) on March 27. MLB.com is estimating that he could make his 2025 season debut in the big leagues by June or July. In 1 2/3 innings in the ACL last Thursday, the 28-year-old knuckleballer gave up an earned run on two hits while walking one and striking out three. He threw 38 pitches in the outing and will likely need at least a few more starts before being under consideration for starting-rotation role at the big-league level. Fantasy managers in 12-team mixed leagues can continue to ignore Waldron.

San Diego Padres right-hander Yu Darvish (elbow) made his first minor-league rehab start on Wednesday with Triple-A El Paso and worked four innings, allowing two earned runs on two hits (one homer) while walking one and striking out four. Although Darvish was hit with the loss for the Chihuahuas against Triple-A Las Vegas, all in all, it was a solid first rehab outing for the 38-year-old veteran. He was sitting at 94.5 mph on the radar gun with his four-seam fastball as he works his way back from inflammation in his right elbow that he began experiencing in spring training in mid-March. Darvish is expected to need a couple more rehab outings before he's a candidate to come off the injured list, meaning he could make his 2025 debut for the Friars by the end of May. When healthy, the Japanese All-Star will be an option for the back end of fantasy rotations in mixed leagues.

San Diego Padres outfielder Fernando Tatis Jr. went 1-for-3 with a home run and two RBI in his team's 6-4 win over the Los Angeles Angels on Tuesday. He walked and scored twice. The 26-year-old stepped to the dish in the bottom of the ninth with teammate Elias Diaz on first and promptly deposited a Kenley Jansen cutter 430 feet over the wall in center field to send everyone home. It left the bat at 109.2 MPH. Tatis Jr. has been excellent to start 2025 and red-hot over the past seven games. Over that stretch, he's 9-for-29 (.310) with a double, eight RBI, and ten runs scored. Furthermore, he's gone yard thrice in that time -- all in his last four outings. Tatis Jr. is up to a robust .316/389/.574 triple slash with 11 long balls, 36 runs scored, 26 RBI, and eight steals. He's looking much more like the 40-homer player we saw in 2021.

San Diego Padres right-hander Dylan Cease turned in a quality start in his team's 6-4 win over the Los Angeles Angels on Tuesday. Cease allowed two runs on five hits over 6 2/3 innings while striking out 10 and walking one, but he had to settle for a no-decision as the Padres' offense didn't come to life until after he departed. Cease has been up-and-down for the Padres this season, posting a 1-2 record, 4.60 ERA, 1.34 WHIP, and 58 strikeouts over 47 innings of work. That being said, Tuesday's start is a reminder of his fantasy upside when he's on. Cease will look to keep it going in his next start, which is scheduled to come against the Toronto Blue Jays on Tuesday.