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After Joe Musgrove's early exit in Wednesday's Wild Card Series clincher against Atlanta, Padres catcher Kyle Higashioka called the veteran right-hander "irreplaceable." Manager Mike Shildt later echoed that sentiment.

Now, the Padres must find a way to replace the irreplaceable. Musgrove will miss the remainder of the postseason -- and presumably the entire 2025 season -- as he is set to undergo Tommy John surgery to repair a torn UCL.

¡°Obviously, a blow to our team on the field,¡± said general manager A.J. Preller. ¡°Just as much, what he means to our group and our team, his presence every single day. He¡¯s totally invested in the Padres organization. ¡­ We¡¯re definitely not here if it¡¯s not for Joe Musgrove.¡±

Navigating the next three rounds (they hope) will be significantly tougher without him. Musgrove posted a 2.15 ERA down the stretch after returning from a stint on the IL in early August.

The Padres can worry about the 2025 portion of this riddle later. In the short term, they now face serious questions in their rotation, as they open their National League Division Series against the rival Dodgers on Saturday night. Presumably, Musgrove would've pitched either Game 3 or 4 at Petco Park next week.

So how do the Padres replace him? Here are three options for the short term:

1. Martín Pérez
"It's going to take guys to step up," Preller said. "Mart¨ªn is one of those guys that we're expecting to step up for us."

Roster-wise, P¨¦rez is the obvious like-for-like replacement. But it's unclear whether the Padres would ask him to start a potential Game 4. In either scenario -- whether the Padres lead 2-1 with a chance to advance or trail 2-1 and must stave off elimination -- that game will be massive.

No question, P¨¦rez has been immensely valuable in San Diego. He struggled earlier this season with Pittsburgh. But after arriving at the Trade Deadline, P¨¦rez posted a 3.46 ERA in 10 starts.

Still, when the Padres acquired P¨¦rez they did not do so with decisive playoff games in mind. They merely hoped he would stabilize the back end of their rotation and help get them to October.

P¨¦rez, to his credit, says he's open to anything.

"I've got to be ready," P¨¦rez said. "In these games, it's not what you want. It's what they need. Where does my team need me to help them win?"

It might be ¡­

2. A bullpen game
P¨¦rez's arrival was not the headline of the Padres' busy Trade Deadline. They landed Jason Adam, Tanner Scott and Bryan Hoeing, significantly reinforcing their bullpen.

If their season is on the line come Wednesday, they might ask that bullpen to cover as many innings as possible.

"Replacing Joe Musgrove is a tall order," said Shildt. "Good news is we have people that we trust, and we have a deep pitching group."

It might end up being a collective effort. With lefty sluggers Shohei Ohtani and Freddie Freeman due up in the first inning, perhaps the Padres would counteract those at-bats with Adrian Morejon as an opener.

It's possible they'd ask Hoeing to cover multiple innings. Adam has proven capable of that as well. And, depending on the situation, maybe there's a spot for P¨¦rez, too.

3. Short-rest Dylan Cease
This is by far the least likely scenario, considering the uneasy history of pitchers going on short rest in the postseason. Cease himself has never done so.

He is slated to start Game 1 on Saturday night. If the Padres were to ask Cease to pitch Game 4, it would allow them to use Yu Darvish in Game 5 on normal rest. (Darvish is scheduled to pitch Game 2, with an off-day before and after the two games in San Diego.)

Perhaps the biggest hint the Padres aren't considering this scenario is the fact that Darvish is pitching Game 2 in the first place. Along with Musgrove, Michael King was the Padres' best pitcher in the second half. If they wanted to maximize a short-rest Cease, they might've asked King to pitch Games 2 and 5. Instead, they'll presumably turn to King for Game 3 only.

That would rule King out for a Game 5 start. Darvish has been solid since his early September return. But not nearly at King's level. Of course, in a decisive Game 5 it would be all-hands-on-deck for the Padres.

In some ways, with Musgrove's absence, it already is.

"Somebody¡¯s going to have to step up," Higashioka said. "Joe is irreplaceable. But this is the time of the year where the only thing that matters is winning. We¡¯ve got to do what we can with the players that we have."