Neither of the Padres’ top starting pitchers – Dinelson Lamet nor Mike Clevinger – are available to pitch in the club’s first postseason in 14 years.
Both Clevinger and Lamet were left off the wild-card postseason roster, which had to be submitted by 10 a.m. today. Both, however, were included in the Padres’ postseason player pool, leaving hope that they could be available if the Padres advance out of the wild-card round.
“Ultimately, we didn’t feel comfortable enough that both guys were going to be able to go out, deliver 80-plus pitches in starting roles, pitch the way they’re capable of,” Padres General Manager A.J. Preller said Wednesday morning.
He added: “We’re looking at it both short-term and long-term. … We’re going to look more toward next week, keep progressing, see if we make progress.”
Both Clevinger and Lamet exited their last starts with tightness in their biceps. Imaging ultimately revealed a posterior elbow impingement for Clevinger, who received a cortisone shot and threw a bullpen during Tuesday’s workout.
Lamet has not thrown a bullpen since walking off the mound Friday in San Francisco, but he has thrown from 120 feet. The team has not revealed if he has had an MRI, but Preller said they’ve been very “thorough.”
“Biceps, distal triceps, obviously when you get in that area you’re always concerned with the ligament,” Preller said. … “When you’re dealing with (the) arm area, there is some gray area.”
The team’s initial fear was that both Clevinger and Lamet would be lost for the entirety of the postseason. While there have been reports that Clevinger is out of the year, Preller knocked down that thinking Wednesday morning.
“We’re not looking at it that way,” Preller said.
Without Clevinger or Lamet on the initial postseason roster, that leaves Zach Davies to start Game 2.
Chris Paddack will start Game 1.
Preller said it would be “all hands on deck” if a Game 3 needed to be played, which was quite the opposite of expectations when the Padres acquired the 29-year-old Clevinger in a nine-player deal with the Indians at the trade deadline.
Clevinger was the presumable No. 1 and Lamet was 1-A, or vice versa.
Either way, the Padres were so deep in the rotation that right-hander Garrett Richards was moved to the bullpen.
A month later, they’re turning to an inconsistent Paddack to start their first postseason game in 14 years. Davies, a seven-game winner and a pleasant surprise in the rotation, will start the second game. Beyond that, it could fall to left-hander Adrian Morejon and Richards piggy-backing to start a bullpen day.
“Nobody is going to feel sorry for you,” Padres manager Jayce Tingler said Tuesday. “We don’t feel sorry for ourselves. Most teams are in this situation … Injuries are going to happen. We’ve talked about being able to adapt. We’ve done a great job this year throughout the regular season.”
The Padres also added left-handed pitching prospects MacKenzie Gore and Ryan Weathers to the 40-man postseason player pool. Neither have made their major league debut.
Other notable decisions on the 28-man playoff roster include carrying three catchers: Austin Nola, Jason Castro and Luis Campusano.
Castro left Sunday’s game with a sprained jaw after taking a foul tip off his mask.
Campusano homered in his big league debut only to have a left wrist sprain send him to the injured list. He was activated from the injured list Monday.
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The Padres’ postseason roster:
RHP (10): Austin Adams, Dan Altavilla, Zach Davies, Pierce Johnson, Chris Paddack, Emilio Pagán, Luis Patiño, Garrett Richards, Trevor Rosenthal, Craig Stammen
LHP (4): Tim Hill, Adrian Morejon, Drew Pomeranz, Matt Strahm
C (3): Luis Campusano, Jason Castro, Austin Nola
INF (7): Jake Cronenworth, Greg Garcia, Eric Hosmer, Manny Machado, Jorge Mateo, Mitch Moreland, Fernando Tatis Jr.
OF (4): Trent Grisham, Wil Myers, Tommy Pham, Jurickson Profar
The rest of the 40-man postseason player pool:
RHP (5): Michel Baez, Mike Clevinger, Dinelson Lamet, Luis Perdomo, Taylor Williams
LHP (3): Jose Castillo, MacKenzie Gore, Ryan Weathers
C (2): Francisco Mejia, Webster Rivas
OF (2): Greg Allen, Jorge Oña
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