Manager Jayce Tingler said Monday that Weathers will open the season as a member of the Padres' bullpen, Dennis Lin of The Athletic reports.
Though Weathers appears to have lost out to Adrian Morejon in the competition to replace Dinelson Lamet (elbow) as the club's fifth starter to begin the season, the 21-year-old lefty will have a spot waiting for him in the bullpen with seven Padres relievers set to open the campaign on the injured list. Weathers has yet to make his regular-season MLB debut, though the Padres thought enough of him to include him on their NLDS roster last fall. San Diego still plans to develop Weathers as a starter, but given the club's ample rotation depth, he's expected to see most of his opportunities as a reliever in 2021.