Padres' Joe Musgrove needs Tommy John surgery, won't pitch in NLDS

SAN DIEGO — Joe Musgrove’s elbow tightness will require Tommy John surgery, a procedure that likely bars him from pitching again until the 2026 season.

Padres President of Baseball Operations A.J. Preller provided the medical update after manager Mike Shildt said Musgrove would not be available to pitch in the National League Division Series against the Dodgers.

“Replacing Joe Musgrove is a tall order,” Shildt said. “Good news is we have people that we trust, and we have a deep pitching group as we know. But Joe’s Joe. He’s a presence, physical presence. He’s pitched outstanding for us since he’s come back, was throwing the ball really well in Game 2 the other day. I can’t say we’re not going to be able to replace Joe. He’s a special individual, but I can tell you we’ll be just fine and compete.

“He’ll be in our hearts, but won’t be with us on the mound.”

Musgrove walked off the mound in the fourth inning Wednesday with elbow tightness. He was expected to undergo an MRI on Thursday, but the results have not yet been made public.

Musgrove has a 2.82 ERA in four postseason starts for the Padres, including allowing a run in 3 2/3 innings in Wednesday’s wild-card-clinching win over the Atlanta Braves.

Musgrove went to the injured list twice with elbow issues, including bone spurs. He overhauled his delivery to take stress off the elbow during a long ramp-up and had a 2.15 ERA in nine starts since returning on Aug. 12.

Musgrove, however, said he’d been dealing with discomfort before having to leave in the fourth inning as his velocity dropped.

“I’ve been dealing with a little bit of tightness for the last couple weeks and just felt like I was at the point where my stuff wasn’t any good,” Musgrove said Wednesday. “I was trying my best to get through it as best I could, but I was at the point where I either pushed through it and risk something worse or get out of there and let our bullpen do their job.”