Randy Vásquez made a clear case for himself on Friday night, and Craig Stammen noticed.
In the Padres’ opener against the Minnesota Twins, Vásquez worked seven innings of two-hit ball and gave up just two runs, helping San Diego start its sweep of Minnesota. The win left the Padres 11 games above .500, and it also pushed Vásquez’s August ERA down to 3.13 across four appearances, including three starts.
For Stammen, the outing carried more than just box-score value.
“Kind of a man on a mission, proving that he deserves to be in the starting rotation,” Stammen said.
That question has been hanging over Vásquez for a while. Since returning from injury, San Diego has used him in different spots, and his exact role has been a topic of debate.
Vásquez, though, isn’t spending much energy on labels. He’s focused on taking the ball and doing whatever the Padres need.
“Wherever the team really needs me,” Vásquez said. “As I’ve said before, it doesn’t matter if I’m a reliever or I’m a starter, I’m going out there and doing my best that I can.
It doesn’t give me any frustrating moments or anything like that. I know that I’m just going to go out there and pitch and do my job as best as I can.”
The season has been uneven for the right-hander. He opened the year hot, then ran into trouble in June, but the overall numbers still show useful work: a 4.19 ERA over 25 appearances, 20 of them starts.
And with the Padres adding multiple starting pitchers at the trade deadline, his rotation spot has been far from secure. Still, Vásquez has kept his head down and let his recent work speak for itself.
That could matter even more as San Diego moves deeper into the stretch run. Joe Musgrove and Nick Pivetta are both out while working back from elbow injuries, and Casey Mize recently left a game early because of injury, which could create even more room for Vásquez.
Stammen pointed to just how demanding that role can be right now.
“The hardest job of anybody in the rotation right now is him coming in at any time in the game, whether starting the game or coming in, middle of the game or after an opener or whatever,” Stammen said. “Mentally, you’ve got to be very strong.
You’ve got to believe in yourself and then be committed to when you go out there that there’s no excuses from when I’m in the game. I’m just in the game, and it’s my job to get outs.
And Randy has done a great job of embracing that and doing a really good job of being successful doing it.”
For now, Vásquez will keep it simple and take it one game at a time. The Padres may still be sorting out his long-term fit, but his latest outing made one thing hard to ignore: he’s giving them real value when they need it.
In Other News...
Padres Suddenly Have A Wild Card Edge Diamondbacks Fans Fear
Ketel Martes absence has become one more twist in a late-season race where every roster move carries extra weight. The Diamondbacks first put the veteran on the restricted list after he did not report on time for a game against the Red Sox, then shifted him to the 10-day injured list after an MRI showed knee inflammation, a sequence that only added to the uncertainty around an Arizona club trying to steady itself.
For San Diego, the timing matters. The Padres have worked their way out of a losing streak and back up the standings by leaning on accountability and steady leadership inside the room, the kind of internal stability that can separate contenders when the margin gets tight. Arizonas latest issue leaves the door open a little wider, and with the two clubs chasing the same late-season goals, the pressure now feels very different on both sides of the desert. [Read more 🡒]
Padres Just Made Another Telling Pitching Decision In Triple A
The Padres have continued to sift through their Triple-A pitching inventory, and the latest move sends right-hander Andrew Thurman back into the market. San Diego released Thurman from El Paso after a rough stretch with the Chihuahuas, where he struggled to find traction in five appearances during his first season in the organization.
Thurman had signed a minor league deal with the Padres in January, hoping to work his way toward another shot at the majors. Now 34 and a free agent, hell be looking for a new landing spot, while the Padres keep adjusting their depth chart in El Paso and searching for arms that can better hold down innings. [Read more 🡒]
Padres Just Made A Curious Roster Call Before The Pirates Series
The Padres made a notable roster tweak ahead of their series with the Pirates, selecting the contract of outfielder Dustin Harris and giving him his first chance at the major league level with San Diego. Harris arrived on a minor league deal in July, and the move places him on both the 40-man and active rosters as the club continues to sort through its depth.
To clear space, the Padres optioned infielder Sung-Mun Song to Triple-A and transferred right-hander Lucas Giolito to the 60-day injured list on the 40-man side. It is the kind of transaction that can fly under the radar in the moment, but it also hints at how the Padres are managing both their immediate bench mix and the longer injury-related picture as they head into the series. [Read more 🡒]