San Diego Padres reliever is available on the market and might be a sweet addition to a needy Dodgers bullpen.
Robert Suarez posted 40 saves for the San Diego Padres last season. Imagine if he's coming out of the bullpen for the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 2026 MLB season.
That is a possibility, Dodgers fans.
Why? Well, considering that the Dodgers might be looking to make some type of sane financial deal, Suarez might deserve a look.
In a recent article from The Athletic, the publication listed one Black Friday deal that all MLB teams might look to pull off. For the Dodgers, that person at the center of their proposed Black Friday opportunity is Suarez.
"'Need' is a relative term for a club coming off consecutive championships, so let’s go with the softer, less pressing, more optionality-friendly usage of 'would like to,'" according to The Athletic article.
"The Dodgers would like to improve their outfield and find a closer," the article continues. "The team would prefer to get younger around the diamond, although that is a hard thing to accomplish through free agency.
"(Kyle) Tucker would be an excellent fit as the World’s Best Paid No. 5 Hitter, but the Dodgers may prefer to just drive up the price for someone else," according to the article. "Same story with Edwin Díaz: do the Dodgers really want to enter another long-term pact with a reliever after watching Tanner Scott combust in 2025?
"Of course, Díaz has a much more accomplished resume than Scott. But so does Suarez, and he’ll likely cost less, for fewer years, than Díaz," according to The Athletic. "A splash — or, really, multiple splashes — is always possible for the Ohtani Era Dodgers, but let’s keep it more reasonable, for the purposes of this exercise."
Suarez has played all four of his MLB seasons with the Padres. Before his 40-save season in 2025, Suarez had 36 saves in 2024. His first two seasons in San Diego saw him mainly as a reliever but not in a closer's role.
He has a career 22-13 record with an ERA of 2.91.
There's no doubt that if Dodgers general manager Brandon Gomes could pull off this deal, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts would feel a whole lot better about his bullpen.
A lot of money was spent on Scott to come through, though. It'll be a tricky situation money-wise if the Dodgers choose to pick up Suarez.
Still, looking at him as a possible Black Friday-type of deal makes sense. Anything to help that bullpen perform better in 2026 is worth considering.