Veteran relief pitcher Robert Suarez logged a league-high 40 saves this season. File Photo by Jim Ruymen/UPI | License Photo
All-Star closer Robert Suarez opted out of the final two years and $16 million of his contract with the San Diego Padres, a league source told UPI on Monday.
Suarez, 34, recorded a 2.97 ERA and league-high 40 saves over 70 appearances in 2025, when he posted a 4-6 record. He went 9-3 with a 2.77 ERA and 36 saves over 65 appearances in 2024, when he earned the first of his two All-Star selections.
The Padres signed Suarez to a five-year, $46 million contract in 2022. The four-year veteran, who is now set to hit free agency, went 22-13 with a 2.91 ERA and 77 saves over the first 206 appearances of his MLB career.
The Padres (44-27), who finished second in the National League West and lost in the first round of the playoffs, had the No. 1 bullpen ERA (3.06) in MLB this season. Padres starters logged the seventh-best ERA (4.06) in the National League.
