The San Diego Padres will lose talent this winter as many high-value players enter free agency. Dylan Cease has already signed with the Toronto Blue Jays, while Michael King is set to pursue a similar path.
Another pitcher, has flown under the radar because he is a reliever, but he has been the closer for San Diego, and he will be missed from the bullpen if he left.
has pitched four years in the major leagues out of the relievers, totaling 5.8 bWAR and a lifetime ERA of 2.91.
He earned a career high of 40 saves previous season, making 70 appearances. His career trajectory has him on track to continue being a high-leverage closer.
Tim Kelly of Bleacher Report forecasts Suarez will go with the Dodgers and sign a two-year, $26 million deal, improving their biggest vulnerability, while allowing the pitcher to re-enter free agency.
“Considering president of baseball operations A.J. Preller acquired Mason Miller at the trade deadline and the Padres bullpen will return Adrián Morejón and Jason Adam (although he’s coming back from a ruptured left quad and may not be ready for Opening Day), San Diego will probably let Suarez walk in free agency,” Tim Kelly of Bleacher Report wrote in an article.
okay; other clubs that are in contention will be delighted to have him in their bullpen. The two-time defending World Series champion Dodgers, much to the displeasure of Padres fans, make quite a deal of sense for Suarez.
“There are going to be some limitations in terms of the amount of years Suarez can get since he’s going to turn 35 in March,” Kelly stated. “The two-year, $22 million deal with a $13 million club option the Royals signed Carlos Estévez to last offseason could be a good baseline.”
Fortunately, San Diego has one of the best deep bullpens in the league. It can afford to take a step back, and the squad can still be good, though losing Suarez to a divisional opponent will likely hurt if he keeps producing like he has.
The Padres will need to rely on their scouting crew and coaching staff to identify underappreciated arms who can either replace Suarez as a group or possibly provide Mason Miller with cover so he can get some experience as a starter.
