About 24 hours after it was announced that Padres right-hander Joe Musgrove will open the regular season on the injured list, two of San Diego 's veteran hopefuls rose up to stifle concern. At the very least, for the time being. First, it was Walker Buehler who struck out seven batters across five shutout frames over the San Francisco Giants on Monday.
Tuesday was more of the same from former All-Star Germán Márquez . The 31-year-old fanned nine while allowing three runs over five innings in the Padres' 9-6 win against the Seattle Mariners .
"I was commanding all my pitches," said Márquez after his performance. "I was pounding the zone. My curveball was good today and slider and I threw a couple of good changeups," he added.
After surrendering six earned runs in just 1 2/3 innings on March 12 versus the Kansas City Royals , it very much seemed that the hurler's chances at earning a spot on the Padres' Opening Day roster were slim to none. Now, barring any further additions via trade or free agency, he might've pitched his way onto it with the absence of Musgrove to start the campaign.
The former Colorado Rockie signed a minor league deal with San Diego in mid-February, hoping to re-garnish some of his past flashes of ace-like potential. Márquez has totaled 200 starts in his big league career, pitching to a 4.67 ERA while notching 1,069 strikeouts.
Diggin' the longball
Six different Friars went deep in Tuesday's nine-run outburst versus the M's.
Gavin Sheets put San Diego on the board with a second inning solo shot to knot the score at one apiece. A batter later, came Xander Boegarts' first big fly of the spring, a 431 foot blast that hit the batter's eye in straightaway center field for back-to-back homers.
After Seattle rallied to take a 4-2 lead in the bottom of the sixth inning, Nick Castellanos brought the Padres back within a run in the seventh with a homer off Mariners closer Andres Muñoz. Ty France , who is in the mix for a bench spot and is hitting .325 with an .872 OPS, launched a two-run round tripper to put the Brown & Gold back on top 5-4.
Non-roster invitees Jase Bowen and Rodolfo Durán finished the home run barrage by each smacking two-run shots of their own to cap off a 92 degree day in Peoria.
Bowen making bold case for roster spot
Speaking of Jase Bowen, the former Pittsburgh Pirates prospect is turning heads at Padres camp. The 25-year-old outfielder joined the organization on a minors contract in late 2025 after electing free agency. In his first camp with San Diego, he's exceeding expectations.
Bowen is slashing .289/.333/.667 with five doubles and 11 RBIs. He's also tied for the team lead in home runs (4) along with fellow teammate Nick Schnell.
Before launching the 449 foot moonshot against Seattle on Tuesday, the attention towards Bowen picked up steam after crushing a grand slam on March 10 versus the Los Angeles Angels .
Bowen and a slew of others such as Schnell, France, Jose Miranda, and Nick Solak are in the mix to land a bench spot with the major league squad. With the trials and tribulations that come with a 162-game season, depth is extremely valuable to have.
Even if Bowen doesn't come away with one, he could come in handy for the Friars later on down the line.
