Padres' Manager Defends Struggling Closer Amid Playoff Push

Maren Angus-Coombs | Sep 17, 2024

Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

For the first time in a long time, San Diego Padres closer Robert Suarez has looked "human."

Suarez blew his second save in his last three opportunities on Sunday in a 4-3 win against the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park.

“Human,” manager Mike Shildt said of what he has seen from Suarez lately. “He was basically (better than) human the first however many parts of the season. The ball is coming out good. … Give credit to (Ramos), put a good swing and put a good at-bat together. They’re just catching up to balls to take some opposite-field shots. That’s a hard thing to do, and they’ve been able to do it. But you know, he’s throwing 99, 100, 101. Stuff is really good.

“It’s part of the game. Over the course of the season, you’re going to give up a few balls to get barreled, and it’s going to be showing up when you pitch the ninth inning. … But I will take him tomorrow in a one-run game. I can tell you that.”

Mike Shildt was asked if he's thought about using Tanner Scott more often in the closer spot due to Robert Suarez's recent usage and struggles: pic.twitter.com/zc7nHlK3ha

— 97.3 The Fan (@973TheFanSD) September 16, 2024

On Suarez’s seventh pitch, a 3-2 fastball clocked at 100.2 mph, Heliot Ramos launched a fly ball to the opposite field, clearing the tall brick facade in right and landing in the San Francisco Bay. This marked the first-ever “splash hit" by a right-handed batter in Oracle Park’s 25-year history.

A strong wind played a role in where the ball ended up, but that home run was just another chapter in Suárez’s recent struggles.

Heliot Ramos ties it up in the 9th with a splash hit!

It's the first splash hit EVER by a right-handed hitter 🤯 pic.twitter.com/T87Hw9Jsy4

— MLB (@MLB) September 15, 2024

Sunday marked his second blown save in his last three chances. On Sept. 5, he gave up an opposite-field grand slam to Austin Meadows, the No. 9 hitter for the Tigers.

Suárez has logged 59 innings this season, which is 31.1 more than he pitched in 2023 and the most he’s thrown since his 62.1 innings in Japan back in 2021. He hasn’t had a clean outing in any of his last eight appearances, posting a rough 6.14 ERA over his last 14 games (14.2 innings).

This is a sharp contrast to his early-season performance, where he blew just two of his first 34 save chances and maintained a stellar 1.42 ERA through his first 44 outings (44.1 innings).

In the end, the Padres pulled off the win by scoring two runs off Camilo Doval in the 10th inning, then securing the 4-3 win with a save from Adrián Morejón to complete the three-game sweep of the Giants.