Kyle

Hart

The 32-year-old southpaw has shown flashes but overall has been pretty terrible through his first five starts — posting a 6.00 ERA, 1.38 WHIP and a 16/6 K/BB ratio across 21 innings. No word yet on how the Padres plan to fill his spot in their starting rotation, but with the luxury of three off days in the next eight days they have time to figure it out.

Hart gave up solo homers to the second and final batters he faced today. He struck out six of the remaining 17, so it was a decent enough showing, and the Padres didn’t need much length from him after using only two relievers Tuesday and having Thursday off. The loss leaves him 2-2 with a 6.00 ERA through five starts. The Padres could start him next Wednesday against the Tigers, but considering that they have three of the next eight days off, he might spend the week in the pen instead.

Hart gave up 10 hits, and 20 percent of that total were homers to Cam Smith. The left-hander was decent outside of those roundtrippers, but the roundtrippers turned a relatively-effective start into a poor one. That tends to happen in this thing we call baseball. Hart has mostly struggled in his chance to establish himself as a member of the Padres’ rotation, with an ERA of 6.48 as evidence .There should be better streamers Wednesday for his scheduled outing against the Tigers.

Hart gave up a double to Kyle Farmer, and that was it. The 32-year-old was facing the worst offense in the National League, but he had quality command of his arsenal while striking out four and not walking a batter. He’ll look to build on this and continue to lower his 5.40 ERA next weekend against the Astros, but fantasy managers should look elsewhere.

And the Padres ended up winning anyway. Hart threw 39 pitches, 18 of them strikes, before finally being yanked. He should stay in the rotation for now and face the Rockies next weekend, but he’s in line to lose his spot after Yu Darvish returns.

Both runs allowed by Hart came off of solo homers, and outside of that the southpaw was solid in his first start as a member of the Padres. The southpaw struck out four, generating 10 swings-and-misses over his 80 pitches while walking just one. Hart has a tenuous hold on his fifth spot in the rotation, but this was a good building block start. He’s scheduled to face the Cubs on Sunday.

Cease and Opening Day starter Michael King are the only locks in San Diego’s starting rotation mix at the moment as a result of spring training injuries to Yu Darvish (elbow) and Matt Waldron (oblique). It’ll be some combination of Nick Pivetta, Kyle Hart and Randy Vásquez taking the ball for the Padres, but the exact order has yet to be determined. There should be some clarity prior to Thursday’s season-opener.

It’ll be Kyle Hart and Randy Vásquez opening the season in San Diego’s starting rotation with Kolek heading to the minors. The Padres’ decision to carry Yuli Gurriel, Gavin Sheets, Jose Iglesias and Brandon Lockridge over Joe is a bit surprising.

If this was an audition for Hart to make the rotation, it didn’t go particularly great. He did strike out four, but he gave up a pair of homers and six hits while struggling to locate. Hart has a chance to make the rotation because of the injuries to Matt Waldron and Yu Darvish, but it’s tough to suggest he’d be worthy of a fantasy roster spot.

Not a huge surprise. Darvish was diagnosed with right elbow inflammation earlier this week, and it’s very uncommon to avoid a trip to the IL with this type of injury. The 38-year-old doesn’t have a concrete return timetable, so fantasy managers should be prepared for a long layoff, even if that’s not guaranteed. Randy Vazquez or Kyle Hart could be a replacement for Darvish to open the year.