Nick Pivetta hit a speed bump in his path back to the San Diego Padres on Tuesday.
The Canadian right-hander exited a rehab appearance with the high-A Lake Elsinore Storm after recording two outs and allowing a single. Pivetta immediately walked off the mound after delivering a 2-2 pitch and went straight to the clubhouse.
Pivetta had thrown 14 pitches — eight for strikes — before departing.
Despite the scary-looking exit, Pivetta did proceed to throw more pitches in the bullpen afterward, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune's Kevin Acee.
Tuesday marked the Victoria, B.C., native's first rehab outing since hitting the injured list with elbow inflammation in early April.
The 33-year-old made four starts before being shut down, posting a 4.50 ERA over 16 innings. He also has 24 strikeouts to open his season.
Pivetta is coming off a career-best 2025 campaign in which he finished sixth in National League Cy Young voting. The six-foot-five righty had a 2.87 ERA in 31 starts and 181.2 innings while racking up 190 punchouts.
The severity of Tuesday's setback will be worth monitoring for Pivetta. The Associated Press reported in February 2025 — shortly after Pivetta inked a four-year, $55-million deal with San Diego — that the Padres can opt out of the final two seasons of the contract if Pivetta is on the injured list for more than 130 consecutive days.
The Padres could also exercise an option for a fifth year in the deal at $5 million, should Pivetta spend the requisite time on the injured list.
So, the 10-year MLB veteran will need to be back on the mound for San Diego by Aug. 22 to avoid giving the Padres the option in either direction.
