Why isn’t Joe Musgrove playing for the Padres against the Dodgers in the MLB NLDS?

MLB favourites Los Angeles Dodgers will take on the in-form San Diego Padres in a best of five fiery National League Division Series matchup which begins on Saturday.

The Dodgers clinched their playoff spot with a rousing 20-run victory mid September on the road against the Miami Marlins as Shohei Ohtani offered one of the best Games ever in MLB History.

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Ohtani delivered six hits, three home runs, two stolen bases and 10 RBIs and became the first ever 50-homer, 50-steals season in MLB history.

In-form Padres

While Ohtani and the New York Yankees’ Aaron Judge are the postseason’s must-see players, the San Diego Padres are a must-see team with a 43-20 record since the All-Star break, as well as a series sweep of the Atlanta Braves in the wild-card round.

The Padres finished second to the 98-64 Dodgers in the NL West, but do not exude the little-brother vibe. San Diego went 8-5 against the Dodgers, the first time they have won the season series against their rival since 2010.

“We’ve been winning a lot of Games against the Dodgers already and we’re prepared,” said the Padres’ Jurickson Profar, who had the best season of his lengthy career with a .280 batting average, 24 home runs and 85 RBIs.

There has been recent playoff success as well, with a 3-1 series win over the Dodgers in the 2022 NLDS.

The Padres will send right-hander Dylan Cease to the mound in Saturday’s series opener. Cease went 14-11 with a 3.47 ERA in the regular season and 1-0 with a 3.38 ERA in two starts against the Dodgers.

Amid Ohtani’s historic season, he batted .326 with a .922 OPS against the Padres, and he’s 4-for-15 in his career against Cease with two home runs.

“He’s a great player, he’s having an historic year, but we feel good about our plan, and the plan is just as good as the execution,” Padres manager Mike Shildt said of Cease facing Ohtani.

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No Musgrove for Padres

The San Diego team were dealt a major blow with the news that pitcher Joe Musgrove will need an operation and will play no further role in the 2024 season.

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Musgrove’s had to cut short Wednesday’s Game 2 during a tight 5-4 win over the Atlanta Braves in the NL Wild Card Series, feeling some tightness in his elbow with a subsequent MRI scan revealing a tear with the 31-year-old now having to undergo surgery to repair the tear with the player admitting that he is ‘devastated’ by the news.