Jeremiah Estrada: Everything you need to know

Estrada (elbow) resumed playing light catch earlier this week, Jeff Sanders of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports. Estrada's velocity had been down through his first seven appearances of the season, but it wasn't until the right-hander felt tightness in his elbow while playing catch before the Padres decided to place him on the injured list last Friday. The Padres are labeling Estrada's injury as tendinitis, and the fact that he's already been cleared to start throwing again offers hope that he'll be in line for an abbreviated stay on the shelf. Despite the early drop in velocity, Estrada was able to strike out more than a batter per inning and netted four holds prior to landing on the shelf.

The Padres placed Estrada on the 15-day injured list Friday with right elbow tendinitis. After logging five straight shutout appearances, Estrada gave up two earned runs on two hits and two walks over 1.1 innings during his outing Thursday. He had been working as a setup man in front of closer Mason Miller, but Jason Adam will presumably take over in that role after being activated from the IL in a corresponding move.

Through nine spring appearances, Estrada has tossed 9.2 scoreless innings, giving up two hits while posting a 16:7 K:BB. Estrada has looked nearly unhittable in exhibition action while racking up a 14.9 K/9. The walks are a bit concerning, though the flamethrowing reliever is coming off a 2025 regular season during which he posted a career-best 8.9 percent walk rate. Estrada also recorded a career-high 30 holds last year and is slated to again be a key high-leverage arm for San Diego in 2026.