{
  "id": 5212434,
  "title": "Padres' All-Star Injury Setback Endangers Postseason Hopes Amid Tight Race",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/03/padres-all-star-injury-setback-endangers-postseason-hopes-amid-tight",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-09-03T00:50:55.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Newsweek",
    "slug": "newsweek",
    "url": "https://www.newsweek.com/sports/mlb/padres-all-star-injury-setback-endangers-postseason-hopes-amid-tight-race-12397737"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "San Diego Padres pitcher Joe Musgrove faces a significant injury setback that could jeopardize his team's postseason hopes. The 33-year-old starter has not thrown a pitch since undergoing Tommy John surgery and a flexor tendon repair in 2024. He is currently on a rehab assignment, accruing a 4.60 ERA across 15.2 innings pitched, but his arm fatigue indicates a slower recovery than hoped. Padres manager Craig Stammen acknowledged the issue, noting, \"He’s just not recovering as quickly as he would like.\" Musgrove's last appearance was against the Oklahoma City Comets on August 27, where he pitched five innings, striking out three and allowing one earned run over 60 pitches. The Padres' already challenging postseason race is now threatened as they sit 0.5 games behind the third spot in the NL Wild Card, trailing the Arizona Diamondbacks. With an easy schedule ahead, the team hopes Musgrove can recover in time to bolster their starting rotation, which currently ranks third-worst in the league regarding innings pitched by starters.",
  "summary": "San Diego Padres starter Joe Musgrove hasn't pitched since 2024, and may miss another year of MLB action after an injury setback.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}