Adrian Morejon called up by the Padres

The San Diego Padres bullpen has been struggling the last couple of games but they are getting some help tonight in the form of Adrian Morejon, who is getting put on the active roster for the first time this season. Drew Carlton, who last pitched on Monday, is being sent back to El Paso.

Morejon was once one of the prize prospects in the Padres farm system but he hasn’t been able to stay healthy consistently at the big league level. The 24-year-old has pitched in just 66 regular season innings over the course of four seasons.

Last year Morejon started the season on the IL because he was recovering from Tommy John surgery. Then when he was on the mound he couldn’t stay on it, as he went on the IL a couple of different times, which included a stint at the end of June with left shoulder inflammation.

Morejon made five postseason appearances and allowed three or more runs in two of those outings. In four outings with Triple-A El Paso this month he allowed just one run in seven innings of work.

Carlton was able to provide some valuable innings for Bob Melvin but the Padres likely believe Morejon is a better option right now considering his upside and the fact that he’s a left-handed reliever. Hader, Hill and Kerr are the other lefties in the ‘pen.