Latest Nick Pivetta Update is Concerning for Padres

San Diego Padres starting pitcher Nick Pivetta has been out since April while battling an ongoing elbow injury.

Pivetta was able to make a rehab start for the team last week, but the veteran was forced to leave the game early due to a setback. The right-hander only made 14 pitches before he walked off the mound due to tightness in his elbow.

Thankfully, it seemed like Pivetta dodged a major injury, but the team has been cautious with him since. San Diego decided to shut Pivetta down from throwing, giving him some extra time to make sure the issue healed.

In the latest update from Padres insider Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune, Pivetta still hasn't ramped up enough to schedule another rehab start.

"Nick Pivetta’s bullpen session Thursday was conducted at a higher intensity and for longer than his previous time on the mound two days earlier," Acee wrote. "There is still no scheduled rehab start."

With the calendar now in the middle of August, the timeline for Pivetta's return seems a little murky. The Padres will want to make sure that he's fully ready to go before putting him back on the mound, but he'll need a handful of rehab starts before that can happen.

Pivetta going to lose the ability to opt in to the last two seasons of his contract due to a clause in his deal that says he can't spend 130 consecutive days on the injured list. The right-hander would have needed to rejoin the Padres by Aug. 22 to avoid this happening.

Manager Craig Stammen provided more insight into the precautions being taken with the right-hander.

“Any time someone comes off the mound in the middle of an inning when they’re rehabbing an elbow injury, you’ve got to pause for just a little bit,” Stammen said. “It would be, in my opinion, a little reckless to go, ‘Hey, throw your bullpen two days later, make your start on four days’ rest, you’ll be fine.’

“I think if we’re really taking really good care of him, we’re being a little bit more diligent this week. And then maybe he recovers well, and it wasn’t an issue.”

When Will Nick Pivetta Return?

With this latest update, Pivetta's return will likely be coming in mid-September, barring any other setbacks. With San Diego needing him to make multiple rehab appearances, this pushes the timeline even further back.

Pivetta only made four starts for the Padres this season before suffering the elbow injury.

Luckily for San Diego, the team isn't forced to wait on Pivetta, with them adding multiple starting pitchers at the trade deadline. The Padres should also be getting right-hander Joe Musgrove back either this week or next.

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