Without Robert Suárez, Are Mason Miller & Adrian Morejon Now On Divergent Paths?

Early November brought some news that was long-expected, as closer Robert Suárez opted out out of the remaining two years and $16 million on his contract. As such, the league leader in saves—who recorded 76 combined over the last two seasons—will handle ninth-inning duty for a new club in 2026. Fortunately for the San Diego Padres, they were prepared for this very scenario. 

The Padres ran as deep bullpen mix as anyone in 2025. Suárez combined with the likes of Jeremiah Estrada, Adrian Morejon, and Jason Adam to comprise an intensely dynamic group of relief arms. The addition of Mason Miller only added to the stability offered by their corps of relievers. Miller's addition, in conjunction with his extended team control, led many to believe that A.J. Preller was accounting for the eventual departure of Suárez two months before the decision was even set to be made. 

That means that while the team will now be without Suárez, they're well-suited to handle things in his absence. While it's impossible to say that the team has gotten better by losing one of the game's top ninth inning arms, neither of the team's already-existent depth and the financial flexibility restored by his opting out are factors that should be ignored in discussing what shape the group takes next season. 

The most intriguing discussion to emerge from this is what now happens to Miller and Morejon, specifically. Estrada and Adam (and, to an extent, David Morgan) are going to be in relief. There's an outside shot at regular ninth inning work for one of them, but the respective paths of each of Miller and Morejon are going to say a fascinating amount about how this pitching staff is constructed for next year. It's all theoretical at present, but worth musing about in an abstract sense given how much time there is between now and the spring exhibition season. 

Miller's name has been floated as a rotation candidate for 2026. It was something discussed in Sacramento prior to his trade and followed him to San Diego, after injury forced him into relief in 2023. With the Padres set to lose each of Michael King and Dylan Cease in free agency, there's not only a volume need in the rotation, but a need for high-end stuff. Miller's combination of a historically good fastball and slider is tantalizing toward such a purpose, even if it's a move that would require more of his seldom-used changeup. After seeing Garrett Crochet pull off such a volume jump to immediate success, it stands to reason that Miller could replicate it given his powerful arsenal. At the same time, you do worry about those durability concerns manifesting again. 

It's not a dissimilar situation from that of Adrian Morejon. A former starter from within the organization, Morejon has had his own health battles that forced him into a successful relief stint. He doesn't offer the same strikeout stuff of Miller, but deploys his upper-tier velocity in limiting quality contact (with a 99th percentile Hard-Hit% in 2025). What sets him apart from Miller is that his stuff would likely play as a starter more seamlessly; Morejon utilized at least five different pitches in '25, including three different shapes of fastball. 

Regardless of which pitcher may or may not be better-suited for a starting role, there are multiple considerations of which to take stock as this offseason wears on. Those considerations appear more in the form of questions, as we have to wonder if one of Miller or Morejon grabbing a rotation spot automatically means that the other would remain in relief. Specifically, does one step into a starting spot while the other slides into the role vacated by Robert Suárez? Or is there a world where both take on a role as a starter while high-leverage relief innings are left to the likes of Estrada, Adam, Morgan, and a lefty-to-be-named-later (in Morejon's stead)? Does the potential for one or both to move to the starting group even make the Padres better considering how much of a strength their relief corps was last year?

Considering the upside, it's easy imagine the Padres would be happy to allow both in their rotation as their health and performance would allow. Relief additions are cheaper (and shorter term) than starters, after all. So, it's unlikely that this is a one-or-the-other scenario. Still, how the Padres answer those aforementioned questions could inform how they choose to approach the offseason in terms of additions to the pitching staff. As such, there's a chance that we, as outsiders, have a good idea as to what opportunities for such a transition would look like depending on who and what acquisitions occur over the course of this winter.