Former SF Giants pitcher makes first MLB appearance after 6-year absence

There are many questions SF Giants fans may randomly ponder in their spare time. What if Willie McCovey's line drive was just a foot higher in 1962? Why did Dusty Baker pull Russ Ortiz in 2002? What ever happened to Albert Suárez? We finally have an answer to the last question.

Former SF Giants pitcher makes first MLB appearance after 6-year absence

I refuse to believe anyone is unfamiliar, but for those who are here is a refresher. Suárez pitched for the Giants back in 2016 and 2017. He did decently for the squad. In 2016, he recorded a record of 3-5 with a 4.29 ERA in 84 innings pitched. He also made 12 starts for the team that season.

In 2017, he only pitched in 31 and 2/3 innings and had a 5.12 ERA. He was non-tendered by the Giants that offseason. What ensued was an odyssey that could have inspired the great Homer himself.

Suárez bounced around a bit after his time with the Giants. In 2018, he was in the minor league system for the Arizona Diamondbacks. After that, he played in Japan and Korea where he had several solid seasons. Last season for the Samsung Lions he had a 3.92 ERA in 108 innings pitched.

Those efforts were enough for the Baltimore Orioles to sign him to a minor league deal in the offseason. Finally, earlier this week, Suarez got called back up to the big leagues. He made his first appearance since 2017 as he started a game for the Orioles and went 5 and 2/3 shutout innings. It is a pretty remarkable story that brings to mind the unique career arc of Ryan Vogelsong.

Now, there may be some Giants fans* who see the last name and assume that we are discussing Andrew Suárez, a pitcher on the Giants from 2018-2020 who returned to the big leagues after a multi-year hiatus overseas.

Nonetheless, it is pretty amazing to see Suárez have this circuitous route back to MLB. If he can build upon his strong first outing it would be a pretty remarkable story this season.

*I may or may not be one of these fans