Long Road Traveled For Giants’ Suarez

SAN FRANCISCORighthander Albert Suarez arrived in Giants camp this spring as a lightly heralded 26-year-old minor league free agent who hadn’t pitched above Double-A.

In just a few months, he claimed a meaningful role on a team that had baseball’s best record at the all-star break.

Suarez received an opportunity because he happened to be the most rested starting pitcher at Triple-A Sacramento when Matt Cain pulled a hamstring. With his ability to throw four pitches for strikes and attack hitters, Suarez not only performed well in six spot starts but has carved out a place for himself as a long reliever.

“Long relief” might also describe Suarez’s emotions at finally making it to the big leagues. The Venezuelan signed with the Rays as a 16-year-old international free agent in 2006 and spent eight years in their system, missing time for reasons both predictable and unpredictable.

Suarez lost a year while recovering from Tommy John surgery in 2009. He made just eight starts in 2011 because of chronic knee pain, and after a pair of surgeries, team doctors finally discovered an unusual cause. They performed a culture that confirmed Suarez had Lyme Disease, a bacterial disease transmitted through the bite of an infected tick.

If untreated, Lyme Disease symptoms can mimic rheumatoid arthritis.

“I don’t know how I got it, but that’s what they told me,” Suarez said. “I couldn’t believe it.”

Suarez finally put together a healthy and durable season in 2015 at Double-A Arkansas in the Angels system. His 2.98 ERA ranked No. 1 in the Texas League, but the Angels didn’t show much interest in re-signing him.

The 6-foot-3, 235-pound Suarez flashed a 95 mph fastball at Sacramento, and on June 18, he found himself starting a game at Tropicana Field—against the Rays.

“I never thought I’d be pitching against them, but baseball changes,” he said. “And I got a chance today, and it’s a good feeling.”

GIANTICS

• The Giants promoted outfielder Steven Duggar, shortstop C.J. Hinojosa and first baseman Chris Shaw from high Class A San Jose to Double-A Richmond on June 30.

• The Giants sold the contract of righthanded reliever Mike Broadway to Yokohama in the Japanese majors.

Comments are closed.

Download our app

Read the newest magazine issue right on your phone