Juan Soto day-to-day with mild oblique strain

Juan Soto suffered what the San Diego Padres described as a mild left oblique strain during a minor league game on Sunday. Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune hears from a team source that the Padres are being “careful” with the injury and that the removal was precautionary, which is naturally understandable given the risk involved in any oblique injury.

For now, Soto is listed as day-to-day, and the outfielder is sure to undergo a battery of tests to investigate the exact nature of the problem. While oblique injuries can vary greatly in severity, it’s rare to see a player suffer even a small strain (or less than a Grade 1 type of strain) and not miss any time whatsoever. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see the Padres place Soto on the injured list as a further precaution, just to give him an extra 10 days (at minimum) at the start of the season to both get healthy and to get fully ramped up.

Soto was limited earlier in spring training by a minor calf problem and he only just returned to San Diego’s camp after playing with the Dominican Republic’s team in the World Baseball Classic. Soto was on fire during WBC play and during limited spring action, so he might not need a lot of time to get ready once he is healthy. However, Acee notes that Soto was playing in the minor league game in order to get some extra work in following his WBC stint.

Losing Soto for any amount of time obviously isn’t ideal for the Padres, especially considering that the team has already been visited by the injury bug during camp. Joe Musgrove is expected to miss at least his first two starts of the season due to a fractured toe, Adrian Morejon is likely also IL-bound due to elbow inflammation, and on Sunday, Austin Nola suffered a possible broken nose after being hit in the face with a pitch.

Adam Engel was slowed by a calf injury earlier in spring training, but he is on pace to be ready for Opening Day and possibly for a larger slice of playing time if Soto is sidelined. Jose Azocar and minor league signing David Dahl could now both make the team and join Matt Carpenter (projected for right-field duty) and starting center fielder Trent Grisham in the Padres’ outfield mix. Fernando Tatis Jr. will also join this group and take over a starting role, but not until he serves the final 20 games of his PED suspension.

A number of other non-roster invitees (i.e. Rangel Ravelo, Tim Lopes, Alfonso Rivas, Max Schrock, Preston Tucker, Brandon Dixon, Luis Liberato) have varying levels of MLB experience and at least some looks in the outfield, so they could also factor into San Diego’s plans. The Padres could certainly add to this group with other minor-league signings or perhaps a higher-level trade in the event that Soto’s oblique strain is more severe than it seems.