Padres' German Marquez Makes Adjustments To Bounce Back From Rough Opener

[Steve Drumwright]

MLB players are so good at catching subtle ticks and movements in opponents. If a pitcher changes anything about their approach throughout a start, hitters will notice and take advantage, leading to a phenomenon known as "pitch tipping." 

German Marquez had an awful debut with San Diego Padres, and when things don't go right as the No. 5 starter, fans start to bring out the biting criticism and want to move on to another option. But there appears to be a simple explanation for that poor showing: The right-hander was tipping pitches. That was what came out of the post-game report of his March 31 outing vs. the San Francisco Giants in which he allowed four runs on four hits and one walk with one strikeout in just three innings. He needed 65 pitches, 41 of which were strikes, to get those nine outs and the Padres lost 9-3 to a Giants offense that has otherwise been scuffling.

On Monday, following a review of the game film and counseling from Padres pitching guru Ruben Niebla, Marquez was a different pitcher. The veteran right-hander tossed five scoreless innings against the Pittsburgh Pirates in a 5-0 victory. He yielded six hits and one walk, while striking out four. Of his 92 pitches, 56 went for strikes to pick up the win, his first after 12 consecutive winless starts.

In addition to hiding whatever he was doing to that tipped off Giants hitters what he was throwing, Marquez also mixed up his repertoire in the Pirates game.

After relying more on his four-seamer against the Giants (46%), Marquez threw his trademark knuckle curve most often vs. the Pirates (41%). His four-seamer was close behind at 38%. His sinker usage (15%) was the same in both games, while he mixed in a few sliders in the Pirates start after shelving it vs. the Giants. The velocity was almost identical on his top three pitches, with the one changeup he threw in vs. the Pirates 2.3 mph faster than the one he threw to the Giants. The reliability of his pitches also helped him wiggle out of trouble in three of his five innings.

The Pirates outing was important for Marquez, but not just to stave off the pitchforks being wielded by fans on social media.

The 31-year-old signed with the Padres at the beginning of spring training for a scant $1.75 million. That was his market value following a 2025 campaign in which he had a 5.47 FIP, the highest of his career in which he made multiple starts in a season. That performance came in a 26-start sample, after making just one in 2024 in a return from a 2023 Tommy John surgery. His 2025 was limited a bit due to tendinitis in his right bicep. Thus, it's not a stretch to say he's apparently healthy for the first time since 2023.

Last year, Marquez used his four-seamer 35% of the time, his knuckle curve 32%, the sinker 20%, slider 11% and changeup 2%, with the velocities in the ballpark of what they are this year. So if you can come to any determinations after two starts (hint: you can't), it would seem that the slider has been put on the back burner. But his confidence has to be restored at least somewhat following Monday. His rocky opener followed a spring training in which he allowed 13 runs in 16⅓ innings, walking seven and striking out 23.

It also comes at an opportune time. Marquez has spent his entire career in the NL West, but his first 10 seasons came with the Colorado Rockies. The 2021 NL All-Star, who owns a career FIP of 4.21, is set to face his old club in his start Saturday when the Rockies visit Petco Park for four games this weekend. That is certainly bound to be an emotional outing for someone with 200 starts under his belt for that franchise.

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