Padres place RHP Craig Stammen on 15-day IL

The San Diego Padres placed right-hander Craig Stammen on the 15-day injured list due to right shoulder inflammation. The placement is retroactive to July 6. 

Righty Dinelson Lamet has been called up from Triple-A to take Stammen’s place on the active roster.

A fixture in San Diego’s bullpen for the last six seasons, Stammen is having another good year, with a 3.34 ERA/3.25 SIERA over 32 1/3 innings. The home run ball has been a bit more of an issue for Stammen this season, yet the 38-year-old is still generating plenty of outs thanks to a lot of soft contact, a 51.5% grounder rate. Stammen’s 3.6% walk rate is in the 97th percentile of all pitchers, and he has been in at least the 91st percentile in each of the last five seasons.

With Steven Wilson, Robert Suarez and now Stammen all on the 15-day IL, the Padres have lost some key arms from what has been a very solid relief corps. None of the injuries are thought to be overly serious at this point, and Wilson and Suarez are already throwing bullpen sessions.

However, there is an opportunity for Lamet to re-establish himself as a player to watch. A fourth-place finisher in NL Cy Young Award balloting in 2020, Lamet has struggled to stay healthy and now may be ticketed for bullpen work in an attempt to avoid further IL trips. Working only as a reliever this season, Lamet has a 9.72 ERA over 8 1/3 innings in the big leagues, but he has looked sharper in minor league action.

Given the close proximity to the trade deadline, Lamet’s recall might also be the Padres’ way of showcasing the righty to potential trade suitors. San Diego was known to be discussing Lamet with other teams earlier this year, perhaps as a way of giving the Padres a bit of extra luxury-tax breathing room.