Joe Musgrove

March 12, 2026

Uncertain for Opening Day

Musgrove (elbow) has had his workload eased back after pitching against Team Great Britain on March 4, and it's uncertain if he'll be ramped up in time for Opening Day, per MLB.com.

Analysis

Musgrove's March 4 outing appeared to go well, as he sat at 94-95 mph with his fastball and threw 60 pitches. However, the team has since decided to slow-play the veteran hurler, who underwent Tommy John surgery in October of 2024 and missed all of last season. "Yeah I think he's day-to-day right now. We knew this was how it was gonna be with him coming back from injury -- it wasn't just gonna be a straight shot all the way through," manager Craig Stammen said of Musgrove on Tuesday, per Valentina Martinez of SI.com. "So giving him the ample amount of rest to get him a little bit of a breather and then we'll get him back out there." On Musgrove's status for Opening Day, Stammen added, "We'll see. We'll evaluate him every single day and then make a decision after that." Should Musgrove have to miss time early in the season, German Marquez, Walker Buehler and Kyle Hart, among others, are candidates to fill his spot in the rotation.