Padres add Randy Vásquez and Freddy Fermin to injured list as pitching, catching depth take another hit

The San Diego Padres placed right-hander Randy Vásquez and catcher Freddy Fermin on the injured list on Friday, continuing a recent stretch of injury trouble that has forced the club to reshuffle both its rotation and its lineup. The moves were announced ahead of a game in Los Angeles, where San Diego is already trying to stabilize a team that has been battered by absences and recently cooled off on the field.

Vásquez is dealing with a right ankle contusion. MLB reported that he was taken to the emergency room late Thursday night after fainting while on his way to receive an X-ray. Further testing cleared Vásquez regarding the fainting incident, and the ankle evaluation did not show a fracture, but the Padres still chose to place him on the IL as a precaution.

Fermin, meanwhile, was placed on the injured list with a head contusion. The Padres said he avoided a concussion, but the decision reflects how quickly an injury to a catcher’s head can become a longer-term availability issue, especially with the position’s constant exposure to impact behind the plate.

The context matters for San Diego because the IL list is no longer limited to one position group. MLB noted that the Padres were riding a six-game losing streak at the time of the announcement and that the club had slipped back to.500, a level it had not reached since early April. Just as importantly for the on-field picture, their pitching staff has been repeatedly thinned out, and the rotation has become especially fragile.

MLB’s report framed Vásquez as a significant loss to that rotation. The right-hander had been among the more important members of San Diego’s staff earlier in the season, and he was also struggling recently, posting a 7.75 ERA across his past eight starts prior to the injury. With multiple prominent pitchers already out, adding another starter to the IL creates a difficult management challenge for the Padres in the coming weeks.

San Diego did receive some more positive news amid the setback. MLB reported that an MRI on right-hander Jason Adam showed no significant shoulder damage, identifying only a minor muscular strain. The Padres also handled the catching workload by moving catcher Luis Campusano back onto the active roster to take Fermin’s place, giving the team an immediate option behind the plate as it navigates the immediate gap in personnel.

For what comes next, the Padres’ priority is straightforward: determine how quickly Vásquez can regain enough mobility to pitch without risk, and confirm that Fermin’s head contusion resolves without further symptoms. With San Diego’s rotation already under pressure from earlier absences, the severity and timeline of both IL stints are likely to shape how the team distributes innings and roster spots until more regular depth returns.