Despite making two blockbuster moves earlier in the offseason, the San Diego Padres were not done adding to their rotation. Following the acquisitions of aces Blake Snell and Yu Darvish, the Padres now also added right-hander Joe Musgrove in a trade with the Pittsburgh Pirates.
In order to get Musgrove, Padres parted ways with four prospects including center fielder Hudson Head and pitcher David Bednar. The New York Mets also got involved in the deal, sending prospect Endy Rodriguez to Pittsburgh and getting San Diego’s lefty Joey Lucchesi.
Padres confirmed the news on Tuesday, making the announcement via social media.
Musgrove, who was 1-5 with a 3.86 ERA and 55 strikeouts in 2020, is a great pickup for the Padres, considering he’s under contract for two more seasons and will earn just $4.45 million annually. He is expected to be slotted high in the team’s rotation, possibly even right behind Snell and Darvish.
The 28-year-old pitcher’s place will largely depend on the conditioning of right-hander Dinelson Lamet, who has a long injury history and was forced to miss last season’s playoffs due to a biceps injury.
Joe Musgrove made his MLB debut with the Houston Astros in 2016 and was part of the team’s World Series-winning roster in 2017. He was traded to the Pirates early in 2018 in a move that saw the Astros landing ace Gerrit Cole.
Musgrove has a 29–38 record as a starter with a 4.33 ERA and 465 career strikeouts.
