The Padres are for sale and they seem to be making progress on that front. Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports that the field of potential buyers has been narrowed from five to four and that the process could be complete by April. Both Acee and Jeff Passan of ESPN report that the sale price is expected to exceed $3 billion.
The Seidler family announced in November that they would be pursuing a sale of the franchise. At that time, it appeared some squabbling within the family could hamper those efforts but reporting in February indicated that some of the legal bumps had been smoothed out and that five prospective buyers had submitted bids. It appears that one of the groups has been removed from the bidding, though Acee doesn’t specify who’s out and who’s still in.
If the price does indeed go beyond $3 billion, that would easily set a new benchmark. The highest sale price for an MLB franchise to date is the $2.4 billion Steve Cohen plonked down to purchase the Mets in 2020.
Turning to the roster, it seems increasingly likely that Joe Musgrove will start the season on the injured list. The righty is looking to get back on the mound after Tommy John surgery wiped out his 2025 season. It was reported three days ago that Musgrove was being brought along slowly in camp. Acee reported yesterday that Musgrove still hasn’t thrown again in the past few days. He pitched three innings in an exhibition game on March 4th but didn’t recover as hoped and has only thrown one bullpen session since then.
The Padres say they are being cautious, with manager Craig Stammen referring to it as a “holding pattern” and a “pause” for Musgrove as they make sure he’s ready to proceed to the next step. “Waiting to kind of get over that hump, feel a little bit better before we start doing anything out on the field,” Stammen said. “But still in a good spot, still something we knew was going to happen, had to prepare for. We’ve got his best interest in mind.”
Even if there’s nothing serious going on, Opening Day is two weeks away, so each day with no progress increases the chances of an IL stint. The Padres are set to open the season with Michael King, Nick Pivetta and Randy Vásquez in three rotation spots. Acee pegs Germán Márquez and Walker Buehler as the favorites for the final two spots, assuming Musgrove hits the IL. Márquez is already on the 40-man roster but Buehler doesn’t yet have a spot. He can opt out of his deal at the end of camp if he doesn’t have one.
Whatever the Friars do for Opening Day will be temporary. Musgrove will be back in the mix at some point. Matt Waldron is behind schedule due to hemorrhoid surgery but is ramping up now. He is expected to start the season on the IL but shouldn’t miss too much time. He is out of options so the Friars would have to find a spot for him on the active roster or bump him off the 40-man. Griffin Canning will also be looking to rejoin the rotation at some point, likely a few weeks later than Musgrove and Waldron.
On the infield, Sung Mun Song is trying to work through a nagging right oblique issue. He may open the season on the injured list, which could have opened a bench spot for someone like Will Wagner. Unfortunately, Acee relays that Wagner is dealing with an oblique strain of his own and has not done any baseball activity since the start of March. He will almost certainly join Song on the IL to start the year. That could increase the chances of someone like Ty France or Mason McCoy getting an Opening Day spot.
Like Buehler, France can opt out of his deal at the end of camp if he’s not added to the 40-man. The Friars opened a spot this week by outrighting Daison Acosta but would need one more if they select both Buehler and France. That won’t be hard. Yu Darvish and Bryan Hoeing are both expected to miss the 2026 season due to surgeries and neither has been moved to the 60-day IL yet.
Photo courtesy of Jayne Kamin-Oncea, Imagn Images
