Mike Clevinger is set to pitch for the first time since the 2020 season, as Padres manager Bob Melvin told reporters (including MLB.com’s AJ Cassavell) that Clevinger is scheduled to start on Tuesday. Ironically, San Diego is playing the Guardians, Clevinger’s team for the first four-plus years of his Major League career.
Cleveland dealt Clevinger to the Padres in August 2020 as part of a huge nine-player trade, and Clevinger proceeded to post a 2.84 ERA in four starts down the stretch for San Diego. However, an elbow impingement limited Clevinger to just a single postseason inning, and that elbow problem soon proved to be dire, as Clevinger had to undergo Tommy John surgery in November 2020. After missing all of last season recovering, Clevinger then had some knee soreness during Spring Training that further delayed his return to the mound.
One of the many success stories out of the Guardians’ pitching development system in recent years, Clevinger had a 2.96 ERA, 28% strikeout rate, and nine percent walk rate over 489 1/3 innings with Cleveland from 2017-20. His emergence as a front-of-the-rotation arm made him a major get for the Padres, even if the TJ surgery wiped out one of the two full seasons of team control that remained at the time of the trade.
It appears as though Clevinger’s return won’t result in an odd man out for San Diego’s rotation, as Melvin said that MacKenzie Gore and Nick Martinez was still lined up for Wednesday and Thursday. That would imply the Padres are going to deploy a six-man rotation for the time being, though that plan could soon be shaken up since Blake Snell is also nearing readiness after a groin strain sent him to the IL on April 10.
Since Yu Darvish, Sean Manaea, and Joe Musgrove aren’t going anywhere in the rotation, the Padres could continue to use a six-man rotation once Snell is back, and then either end Gore to the minors or move Martinez into a relief role. While all of the injury concerns created plenty of uncertainty, this glut of pitching gave San Diego some flexibility with their pitching depth, as evidenced by their trade of Chris Paddack to the Twins and their willingness to discuss Dinelson Lamet in trade talks with other clubs.
Forecast says Sunshine all day in Cleveland this Tuesday! Go get ’em, kid!
Gonna be next years Syndergaard and sign a 1 year prove it deal then cash in 2024
Will be interesting to see how they limit his innings and starts
I predict a rainout
*FRESNO FIRE FROGS
It has been an incredible start to Mackenzie Gore’s MLB career, especially after his massive struggles last year in the minors. Even with a healthy Clevinger & Snell, it would make no sense for San Diego to pull him out of the rotation. They could go with a 6-man rotation of Darvish, Musgrove, Clevinger, Snell, Manea & Gore (not necessarily in that order) and move Martinez to the bullpen. They can limit Clevinger’s innings by teaming him up with Martinez in the games he starts. So long as SD doesn’t suffer a major injury to one of their starters, they could end up having one of the deepest starting rotations in all of baseball, keeping them in the playoff hunt all season long. I’m looking forward to Clevinger’s start to see how he looks.
Gore has pitched twice against my beloved Reds. You may be getting a false reading….
They’re certainly deep in the rotation now. If Clevinger regains a good portion of what he was before, look out. Machado seems to be getting going now and Tatis is on the way – this team can make some real noise, as with all teams, health permitting.
Worst trade of the Preller era?
That Trea Turner blunder and the Ty France trade are up there too, he’s had so many bad trades it’s hard to choose.
I don’t like Preller at all. He already kill our franchise.
The France trade.
Didn’t like the Austin Nola trade when it happened or now but that trade pales in comparison to Clevinger, Turner or Kemp.
Some of you guys are forgetting that many traded for clevinger had no real place with the padres, sure Cleveland turned quantrill around, but thats more a great Cleveland system and less on preller being an idiot. Quantrill wasn’t going anywhere with the padres, unfortunately
@damascusj Nice try. Those players could have been traded for something else. It wasn’t “Trade them for Mike Clevinger or release them.”
And the Padres’ minor league development system being bad is 100% Preller’s fault. That should have been literally the first or second thing he fixed when he was first hired.
That Nola trade was absolutely awful. Especially considering they traded Franmil for Trammell.
Franmil, France, Torrens and Munoz for Nola and Austin Adams… yuck.
The Clevinger trade may end up giving the Nola trade a tun for it’s money though.
Don’t forget Logan Allen and Victor Nova.
Logan Allen would slot in nicely in SD’s SP depth chart, #11-12, or somewhere between El Paso and Ft Wayne.
Could have been traded for something else
Trammel was the something else
I meant something other than Trammell.
When can we expect you to be the next big GM?
Franmil has a career WAR of 2.7 over 1450 ABs, and is one the worst defensive OFs in the league. Austin Nola 3.7. WAR in just 630 career ABs
Cal Quantrill has a Sub 3 Era since being apart of this trade. Of course Eric Lauer is making that Milwaukee trade look pretty painful too. The France trade is bad and Munoz isn’t even racking up saves yet. It really is hard to pick the worst one.
The Musgrove trade was the worst. He’s been a major bust. I’d say the Manaea, Cronenworth, Grisham, Tatis, Voit, Darvish trades were worse, but I can’t recall who they gave up for those guys.
@harambe.. At the time of the trade no. They thought they were adding an ace and AS to staff. It didn’t work out due to injury. Things happen Ask LA GM about Bauer.
Not convinced there wasn’t something Cleveland wasn’t telling Preller. Why DID they trade their #2 starter in the middle of a playoff race? It’d be like if the Padres were to stay in the hunt for the division this year and they were to trade, say, Sean Manaea at this year’s deadline.
If Cleveland knew he needed TJS and lied about it….then wow. Preller is the victim not the deserving of being criticized for outcome of trade. Hope Sunshine does well today and rest of year.
I can’t prove Cleveland knew he needed TJS. Just sus that they would trade their #2 (or #3 depending on how bullish you are on Zach Plesac) when they were ostensibly in the playoff race. People will hoot and holler about how the Guardians had enough starting pitching depth to replace him in-house but how often does a team trade a core player at the deadline and then make a deep playoff run that same year? Besides the Red Sox trading Nomar Garciaparra to the Cubs (which was 18 years ago), I can’t think of any.
This year is it. This year is the very last year for him to prove what he’s got on the mound.
Gore has pitched twice against my beloved Reds. You may be getting a false reading….
It’s “coincidental” The start is against Cleveland but not “ironic”
Man, if he’s healthy, this staff looks solid
Will the Padres finally get something out of Clevinger?!
The Padres Robert Hassell III is crushing it in the minors and should be “fast tracked” to MLB.
He killed it in A and AA ball.
He plays all 3 OF posiitons.
He is part of the Padres solution in the OF some time this year or early next year at the latest.
Do Not Trade this Guy for some overpriced, declining veteran talent
(that has ties to the Texas Rangers)….
https://www.mlb.com/news/robert-hassell-iii-collects-4-hits-for-fort-wayne-tincaps?t=mlb-pipeline-coverage
Hassell is 20, he won’t be in MLB this year
*Coincidentally, San Diego is playing the Guardians…
(fixed your article, Mark)