Padres' Joe Musgrove leaves Wild Card start against Braves with apparent injury

San Diego Padres right-handed pitcher Joe Musgrove was forced to exit his Wild Card start against the Atlanta Braves in the fourth inning with an apparent injury.

Musgrove retired in the top of the fourth inning with the Padres leading 5-1. There were no clear signs of injury to Musgrove, but it wasn't long before he was removed from the game by the Padres practice squad.

Musgrove appeared to shake his right arm after throwing a pitch. After a brief meeting on the mound, Musgrove was removed from the game. Here is a video of the incident:

ESPN's Buster Olney reported on-air that there were concerns about Musgrove's right elbow. Musgrove has struggled with elbow problems all season.

In the fourth inning, Musgrove threw a curveball at 76.8 mph, well below the 81.6 mph the pitch averaged this season. At that point, catcher Kyle Higashioka checked on Musgrove and was ultimately removed from the game.

Right-handed pitcher Bryan Hoeing came in on short notice to replace Musgrove with two outs to start the fourth inning. He retired Matt Olson to end the fourth inning.

Musgrove went 6-5 with a 3.88 ERA in 19 starts this season, his highest since joining the Padres. The Padres should provide updates on Musgrove soon. If the Padres hold their lead on Wednesday, they would win the Wild Card and secure a spot in the National League Division Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Game 1 of the NLDS takes place on Saturday in Los Angels, while Game 2 takes place on Sunday.

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