Right handed reliever Jeremiah Estrada, 26, was claimed off waivers by Padres general manager AJ Preller on November 6, 2023 after being released by the Chicago Cubs. Estrada had struggled in the Cubs organization, throwing only a fastball and splitter after the organization told him to sideline his changeup.

In an April piece in The Athletic, Dennis Lin chronicled the pitchers struggles with his pitches and the organization: The Cubs had Estrada lean on his fastball and throw significantly more sliders than changeups. Then, in 2023, they tried to teach him a splitter, with the ball wedged between his index and middle fingers. Estrada never got comfortable with it. Yet, he said, he kept being asked to throw the splitter in games — sometimes after he had worked on the pitch in a bullpen session the same day.

After repeated difficulties with getting hitters out, Estrada was sent down to the minors. He eventually opted to go to Arizona and work on his pitches. It was there he came up with the split-change grip that is referred to as the ‘chitter’.

After the Cubs released him and Preller grabbed him off the waiver wire, Estrada went to the biomechanics lab at Point Loma Nazarene University (a joint venture with the Padres) and Padres pitching coach Ruben Niebla analyzed and tweaked all his pitches, including the newly developed chitter.

Estrada entered the 2024 Padres bullpen out of spring training and quickly made his mark on the record books. From May 23 to May 28 of 2024, he struck out 13 consecutive batters and set an MLB record for the expansion era (1950’s and 1960’s expansion of baseball).

During his first season with the Padres he struggled with an extended bout of stomach flu, losing at least 17 pounds over a long period of time in early summer. He continued to pitch despite only being able to eat rice and bread at times. His effectiveness suffered during this stretch but he still finished the year with a 6-3 record and a 2.95 ERA with 94 strikeouts versus 23 walks in 61 innings pitched.

After his time with Niebla and the biomechanics lab, Estrada featured an improved fastball that clocked at up to 98 mph with elite carry, his 83-85 mph chitter and a slider at 85-91 mph. His time at the lab helped to hone the shape and increase the velocity of his offerings.

For the 2025 season, Estrada has further refined the use of his three dominant pitches, using his chitter and slider more and his fastball use dropping by 5% so far this season. His 1.86 ERA is second to Jason Adam (1.69) and he is tied with Adam with 28 strikeouts (Adam has 21.1 IP to Estrada 19.1 IP). Estrada has only walked four.

Jeremiah Estrada is under team control through 2030 and is arbitration eligible for the 2027 season. He is making $776,500 for 2025. Closer Robert Suarez is a free agent after this season and set up man Jason Adam, who is 33 years old, is a free agent following the 2027 season and received $4.8 million in arbitration for this season.

The path seems clear to Estrada working his way to the set up and then closer roles with the Padres if he continues his current success.

All numbers entering Tuesday’s game