As it turns out, Luis Arráez isn’t the only veteran bat likely returning to the San Diego Padres lineup this week. Padres manager Mike Shildt announced Sunday that left fielder Jason Heyward could rejoin the team as soon as Tuesday. San Diego placed Heyward on the injured list earlier this month with left knee inflammation. The San Diego Union-Tribune reported that Heyward hit on the field and participated in defensive drills before Sunday’s 4-2 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays. San Diego inked Heyward to a one-year, $1 million contract in February, hoping the 35-year-old still had something left in the tank. Instead, Heyward began his Padres career hitting .190 with a home run, six RBI, and an ugly .541 OPS across 48 plate appearances. The 16-year veteran tallied -0.2 bWAR over 17 games, continuing the fears that arose during his poor spring training. However, it appears the 2015 All-Star will remain in the lineup despite his rough start. None of this is new for Heyward, who has averaged 1.2 WAR since signing an eight-year, $184 million contract with the Chicago Cubs ahead of the 2016 season. At his best, Heyward is a replacement-level lefty bat, though that’s typically not enough for playoff contenders. Heyward split last season between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Houston Astros, hitting .218 in 258 plate appearances. He owns a .256 average, 185 home runs, a .746 OPS, and 41.9 bWAR since debuting with the Atlanta Braves in 2010. At least Heyward’s $1 million Padres contract pushed him over $191 million in career earnings. We’ll see if he adds a second World Series ring to his resume, too.

The Friars will be forgoing a fifth starter for the next 10 days.

We are in the final weekend of Major League Baseball’s first month of the season. Teams begin the evaluation process with their roster, as changes will likely follow.

As soon as Kyle Hart struggled on the mound, you knew he would become a victim of his ineffectiveness. The San Diego Padres wasted little time sending him to El Paso after another disappointing outing.

Hart’s pitching struggles could go unnoticed any longer

In five starts, Hart went five innings or fewer in four of those starts. He posted an impressive 6.7% walk rate but struggled striking out (17.8% K rate) opposing hitters. Another concern is the low ground ball rate (33.3%), as Hart left the ball up in the strike zone. He has given up six home runs this month.

Hart’s pitching arsenal has been batting practice for right-handed hitters. They’re hitting .333 against him. His changeup is failing to neutralize them early in the count.

Schedule dictates four-man rotation

The schedule makers did the Friars a favor as they will not need a fifth starter until May 5 during the series against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium. It will allow Padres manager Mike Shildt to use a four-man rotation in the interim.

The lack of starting pitching depth does not afford the Friars to have any prolonged stretch of ineffectiveness by a starter in the rotation. The timeline for Yu Darvish’s return to the active roster remains unclear. Keep an eye on Bryan Hoeing being used as a spot starter upon his return from the injury list.

The demotion seemed academic, but Hart can use being sent down to Triple-A El Paso as motivation to regroup and work on becoming more consistent on the mound. He needs to seize the moment instead of squandering the opportunity as Hart has done in the past. Positive results may fuel the Padres to bring him back to the majors.

Granted, five starts is a small sample, but Hart has been erratic. However, there is no reason for panic.

The Padres’ roster move may have been motivated by the number of off days coming this week. Hart must use the time to resolve his pitching issues before he returns to San Diego.

If not, it is hard to imagine the Friars bringing him back any time soon.