Pivetta's Rehab Blow Makes the Robbie Ray Trade Look Even Better

San Diego already knew it needed rotation help when it sent prospects Miguel Mendez and Joniel Hernandez to San Francisco for Robbie Ray on Monday. Then Nick Pivetta walked off the mound mid-inning during his first rehab appearance at Lake Elsinore on Tuesday, and the need got a little more urgent.

The rotation picture has been rough all year. Musgrove, Giolito, Hoeing, and Darvish are all unavailable. Griffin Canning has a 6.65 ERA in 19 starts. That leaves Michael King and Randy Vásquez as the workhorses, and Vásquez has had his own health scare this summer. Ray, a 2021 AL Cy Young winner who has pitched well since June by most accounts, slots in as the clearest upgrade San Diego could have made at the deadline.

The timing is fine, too. The Padres are 50-45, riding a seven-game win streak, and holding the sixth seed in the NL. They have 67 games left to prove the rotation can hold. Ray gives them a credible arm to plug into a spot that otherwise would have gone to someone the team cannot fully trust right now.