Mike Clevinger’s postseason status in jeopardy due to elbow injury
By John Buhler
Mike Clevinger may have very well thrown his last pitch of 2020.
It does not sound like Mike Clevinger will pitch for the San Diego Padres again this postseason.
According to FOX’s Ken Rosenthal, Clevinger is dealing with elbow inflammation, which caused him to be pulled from Game 1’s start on Tuesday night after only 24 pitches. He lost all velocity on his fastball and will now have to get that under control for about a week. But in doing so, he’ll be pulled from the NLDS roster, which would make him ineligible from making the NLCS roster.
Mike Clevinger will need about a week for inflammation in his elbow to calm down, then will get more images. He is virtually certain to be taken off the DS roster, and then by rule would be ineligible for next series if Padres advance. No word yet on who replacement might be.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) October 7, 2020
The Padres need to get to the World Series if they want Clevinger to return.
Down 1-0 in the 2020 NLDS vs. the division rival Los Angeles Dodgers, the Padres will need to win three of their next four games to keep their season alive. Though the Padres are capable of avoiding being swept, the Dodgers are seen as the best team in baseball and should have no issue advancing to the NLCS this year, where they will very likely meet the Atlanta Braves.
And that’s where this gets even trickier for the Padres. For as exciting as the offense is built around Manny Machado and Fernando Tatis Jr., San Diego has next to no shot of advancing without having the necessary starting pitching to compete with the Dodgers. Losing Clevinger for potentially the next two series almost guarantees their season is coming to an end here soon.
Though he doesn’t hit free agency until 2023, it’s safe to say the Padres haven’t gotten the best early return out of their prized trade deadline acquisition. The former Cleveland Indians fireballer only made four starts with the Padres after getting traded and only gave San Diego 24 pitches this postseason. This team’s window is wide open, but its chances to win it all this year are slim.
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Had the Padres won Game 1 over the Dodgers on Tuesday night, we may view their continued postseason viability in a more positive light. However, San Diego will be at a major disadvantage with starting pitching for as long as Clevinger is out. This will hurt the Padres no matter how far they advance in the postseason. While they won a series, the buck stops here in the NLDS.
Clevinger could pitch again in the World Series, but the Padres are probably not getting there.