When Joe Musgrove reported to spring training to start his sixth big league season, a brown and gold No. 44 San Diego Padres jersey was hanging in his locker.
The No. 44 is a nod to Jake Peavy, the fiery right-hander Musgrove grew up cheering for. Musgrove continued to follow his hometown Padres even as his big league career unfolded elsewhere, and now he’ll get to pitch at Petco Park as part of a powerhouse rotation San Diego is counting on to take it deep into October. “Putting on that jersey for the first time the other day was pretty special, and just hearing all the feedback from my family and friends about how good it is to see me in a Padres uniform,” Musgrove said in a videoconference Saturday from Peoria, Arizona.