Padres' Jake Cronenworth on injured list with rib fracture, recovery timetable unclear

New York Times

12-04-2025

SAN DIEGO — After a road trip that included three wins, three losses and three injuries, the San Diego Padres got one key player, right fielder Fernando Tatis Jr., back in the lineup Friday. Another, however, will be sidelined for an undetermined amount of time.
Before a series opener against the visiting Colorado Rockies, second baseman Jake Cronenworth joined center fielder Jackson Merrill (right hamstring strain) on the 10-day injured list with a non-displaced rib fracture. The Padres did not disclose a recovery timetable for Cronenworth, who took a pitch to the ribs Sunday, hit a home run Monday and exited a game Tuesday because of what the team at the time believed was cramping in his ribcage area.
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Cronenworth said he learned Thursday, through the results of an MRI, that he had sustained a fracture.
'As far as timelines go, it's unfair to put one on it. (The Padres' medical staff) will take the lead on it,' Padres manager Mike Shildt said. 'But Jake will have a say in it as well. Fortunately, it wasn't displaced, so it's a matter of getting … some of the healing to take place. And then it's a matter of his functionality. Hopefully, it doesn't take too long.'
We have placed INF Jake Cronenworth on the 10-day IL with a non-displaced right rib fracture (retro to 4/9), selected the contract of INF/OF Tyler Wade and transferred RHP Matt Waldron to the 60-day IL.
— San Diego Padres (@Padres) April 11, 2025
Cronenworth's stint on the injured list is retroactive to Wednesday, meaning he can return as soon as April 19, but the nature and location of his injury suggest he is in for a more extended absence. To replace him on the active roster, the Padres selected the contract of utility player Tyler Wade and transferred right-hander Matt Waldron (left oblique strain) to the 60-day injured list. Veteran infielder Jose Iglesias will make his second consecutive start at second base Friday night.
Cronenworth said that before he had the MRI, he thought he was only suffering from a bruise. Like Shildt, he declined to discuss specifics of a potential return date.
'Open-ended, I guess,' Cronenworth said. 'A lot of it's going to be hopefully pain tolerance. So, whatever they say the timeline is, hopefully earlier. But yeah, it's only (been) less than 24 hours.'
Cronenworth, 31, was hitting .257 with an .895 OPS and two home runs, one of which he hit with a fractured rib. The Padres, at 10-3, are off to the best start in the majors.
'I wouldn't say (the timing of the injury is) necessarily discouraging,' Cronenworth said. 'I think discouraging would be at the end of the season. I think being only 13 games into the year and hopefully only being out for a little bit of time and being able to finish the rest of the season is something you look forward to.'
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With Cronenworth and Merrill on the shelf — Merrill cannot return until Thursday, at the earliest — a top-heavy team will lean on its able-bodied stars. The Padres, then, considered themselves fortunate that Tatis was scheduled to return to the leadoff spot against the Rockies. The right fielder tweaked his surgically repaired left shoulder Tuesday, rested for the next two days and said before Friday's game he was feeling 'great.'
'Everyone feels confident that he's in a position where he can go play baseball,' Shildt said.
Wade, a reserve last season, was designated for assignment March 27. He was outrighted to Triple A last week. Now back with the Padres, he will again fill in at multiple positions and, for now, perhaps mostly in the outfield.
Meanwhile, yet another key player remains on the injured list with no clear timetable. Veteran right-hander Yu Darvish (right elbow inflammation) continues to increase the intensity of his long-toss sessions, but he has yet to resume throwing off a mound.