New Padres Reliever Praises Fan Base For Helping Energize Team

Maren Angus-Coombs | Aug 19, 2024

Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports

The San Diego Padres addressed a giant need at the trade deadline when they went and acquired multiple arms for the bullpen.

Bryan Hoeing was acquired via a trade with the Miami Marlins that also brought Tanner Scott to San Diego.

Hoeing might be the steal of the deadline.

Hoeing recorded a 2.70 earned run average and a 1.267 WHIP for Miami in 16 games and 30 innings pitched in 2024. Through 10 innings (six games), Hoeing has only allowed two runs (one earned) on four hits and has an ERA of 0.90.

"It's basically a sold-out crowd at Petco Park every single game. The fans cheering behind you has added to some adrenaline on the mound."#Padres RP Bryan Hoeing is settling in nicely to his new home in San Diego:#LetsGoPadres | @Padres
🔗 https://t.co/iXax8hxC8m pic.twitter.com/5kuUjFE0pq

— MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM (@MLBNetworkRadio) August 17, 2024

"A new environment, obviously, you want to come out there and show your worth in the trade and just show your new teammates that they can trust me when I come into the game on the mound," Hoeing told MLB Network Radio. "I'm going to come in there in any situation and give my best effort, try to get some outs, and help the team win."

Hoeing has been doing just that and more.

The 2019 seventh-round pick out of the University of Louisville has gone from a team desperate for fans and one of the worst records in Major League Baseball to a contender playing in front of sellout crowds.

"It's basically a sold-out crowd at Petco Park every single game.," Hoeing added. "The fans cheering behind you has added to some adrenaline on the mound."

Hoeing's backstory is a unique one. His father passed away in 2000 when he was just three years old. His older brother, Mike, was five and their mother Donna never remarried. She dedicated all her time to raising her two boys.

Donna coached the boys' youth teams forcing Bryan to play up an age group because she couldn't be in two places at once.

“It's crazy,” Bryan said. “Her world was basically flipped upside down at that point. She had to make a lot of sacrifices, and basically, she was just my father figure and mother figure all in one. She started doing the yard work and mowing the grass and just doing stuff out in the building like making tables and chairs out of the wood, so woodcrafting. She's very good with that type of stuff. And she had to. She had no other choice.”

Bryan learned a lot from his mom and that prepared him for life as a professional.

“Throughout the years, she was definitely still hard on us,” Bryan said. “I think that's where the father figure came in. She was not like the whole lovey-dovey type, ‘Oh, I love you so much, son.’ She was very hard on us because she was still our coach growing up. She had a lot on her plate, and she did a really wonderful job. My brother's doing really well, too. He lives in Chicago now [with] a very successful job. So she did a good job of raising both of us by herself.”