Closer Robert Suarez has signed a three-year, $45 million contract with the Atlanta Braves, the team announced Thursday..
Suarez, who led the National League this season with 40 saves in 45 chances, became a free agent in early November after opting out of $8 million options for 2026 and 2027.
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He took the reins as the closer for the San Diego Padres over the past two seasons and established himself as one of the game’s best at that role, making two All-Star teams, posting a 2.87 ERA and saving a major-league-leading 76 games. Suarez struck out 75 batters in 69⅔ innings last season while sporting a career-low 5.9% walk rate.
Despite pitching in his age-34 season, his fastball still averaged 98.6 mph.
A native of Venezuela, Suarez, who turns 35 on March 1, originally played professionally in Mexico and then spent five seasons pitching in Japan. He went on to catch the eyes of Padres officials with two dominant seasons for the Hanshin Tigers in 2020 and 2021, initially signing a one-year, $6 million major league contract to pitch and then parlaying it into a more lucrative deal that paid him a combined $30 million from 2023 to 2025.
Suarez joins incumbent Braves closer Raisel Iglesias in the back end of the team’s bullpen. Iglesias, who had 29 saves in 34 chances last season, re-signed on a one-year, $16 million contract last month.
ESPN’s Alden Gonzalez contributed to this report.
