WELCOMING MANFRED AVAILABILITY
Commissioner Rob Manfred met with his bosses last week at the quarterly owners meetings in New York to discuss a wide variety of topics touching the game, from the state of the actual baseball to the international draft to experiments with pitch clocks and robo-umps in the minors. Manfred's plans to get in front of players in the coming weeks included stopping at Petco Park on Tuesday to hold court with any Padres wishing to have an audience with him.
Players largely opted to keep those discussions inhouse but appreciated facetime with Manfred following the labor stoppage that led to the delay of the 2022 season, as well as what appeared to be open hostility between the two parties as they negotiated a new collective bargaining agreement.
Baseball's owners locked out the players when the previous CBA expired in December.
The two sides did not have any substantive labor talks until just before pitchers and catchers were originally scheduled to report to teams' facilities in February, leading to the cancellations of several spring training games before
the two sides hammered out a deal.
“It's nice of him to be willing to show up and talk to us,” said reliever Craig Stammen, who teams with Jake Cronenworth as the Padres' union representatives. “That's definitely an olive branch that was not extended before.”
Musgrove returns
The Padres are still awaiting the return of Bob Melvin from his stay in COVID protocols but welcomed Joe Musgrove back into the clubhouse Tuesday. The righthander cleared protocols before
the game. He was not activated as he is no longer scheduled to pitch today, but he certainly felt like he could take that turn if the team didn't have Mike Clevinger ready and waiting.
“As soon as possible,” Musgrove said. “I took care of everything I needed to while I was out. I was doing my throwing. I was working out at my gym at the house, doing my running. I felt like I really haven't missed a beat and just kind of waiting for the opportunity.”
That opportunity will come Thursday, exactly a week after he struck out nine over seven innings of two-run ball in a matinee in Chicago to improve to 8-0 on the season.
At the time, the heat, Musgrove said, was more of a nuisance than “the sinus or allergy stuff ” that had begun to set in. He addressed worsening symptoms with the team the next day, tested positive, was placed on the COVID injured list and was already beginning to come out of it by Sunday.
“I don't know what it is that makes it run through my system faster than others,” Musgrove said.
He added: “I kept everything on routine, pretty much essentially the same stuff I do here without actually coming to the field. I feel good. I feel strong, ready to go.”
Suarez’s progress
Robert Suarez played catch on the field on Tuesday with Pierce Johnson, Suarez's first time picking up a ball since undergoing surgery on June 9 to address the loose impediments causing discomfort in his right knee.
Suarez remains without a specific timeline but expressed optimism as he began his rehab work.
“I feel really good,” Suarez said through interpreter Danny Sanchez. “I felt a little more strength there in the leg. … We haven't set a definitive timeline. So long as there's progress, that's what we're looking for right now.”
Notable
Padres hitting coach
Michael Brdar is a candidate to become the head coach at his alma mater, the University of Michigan. Brdar, 28, is in his first season with the Padres. He played at Michigan in 2016 and '17, earning All-Big Ten honors his senior year. He worked on head coach Erik Bakich's staff in 2019 and '20. Bakich became head coach at Clemson last week.
• With Musgrove folding back into the rotation Thursday, RHP Nick Martinez will be available out of the bullpen to provide coverage as Clevinger makes his second appearance since his stay on the COVID injured list. LHP MacKenzie Gore, LHP Blake Snell and RHP
Yu Darvish are expected to start in that order after Musgrove pitches the opener against the Phillies.