Matt Waldrons’ status draws outlook amid looming Lucas Giolito return

With Lucas Giolito set to make his 2026 debut with the San Diego Padres soon, the club will have to switch things up with the starting rotation to make room for the nine-year veteran. It appears manager Craig Stammen has seemingly already decided the odd man out is Matt Waldron.Stammen informed media members that Waldron, who is 29 years old, is likely to be moved to the bullpen to work as a long reliever once Giolito officially returns, according to Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune. The first-year manager believes Waldron can provide value out of the bullpen to help the Padres remain competitive in the NL West.“We obviously know (Lucas) Giolito is coming at some point, relatively soon,” said Stammen. “That leaves one guy out of the starting rotation, probably, and so ‘Waldy' is probably going to be that guy in the bullpen. He picked us up today, big time. We needed those two innings. He saved us for tomorrow. We're going to have a chance to win the next three games, because he pitched those two innings, which is pretty awesome and admirable.”Stammen gave Waldron a shoutout for the two innings he pitched out of the bullpen to finish the 7-1 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers on Thursday. Although the game resulted in a loss and was well out of reach by the time Matt Waldron took the mound, he saved some of the team's other arms in the bullpen for the next three-game series against the Seattle Mariners.The bullpen might just be the best place for Waldron, as it hasn't been a pretty sight for him as a starter this season. In five appearances this season, three as a starter, Waldrown owns a 9.28 ERA and 1.828 WHIP while recording 18 strikeouts in 21.1 innings pitched.With Lucas Giolito set to make his 2026 debut with the San Diego Padres soon, the club will have to switch things up with the starting rotation to make room for the nine-year veteran. It appears manager Craig Stammen has seemingly already decided the odd man out is Matt Waldron.