San Diego Padres’ Mason Miller struck out Seiya Suzuki with a 102.9 mph fastball in last year’s playoffs. Nine months later, the Chicago Cubs outfielder beat him on a slider. Their next meeting could come with Chicago’s season hanging in the balance.
The Cubs open their Wild Card Series against the Padres at Petco Park on Tuesday at 9 p.m. CT. Michael King will start for San Diego, but MLB’s series preview identifies Miller as its ninth-inning choice. For Suzuki, that could mean another chance against a pitcher who has shown him two very different outcomes.
That June meeting showed how Suzuki handled one of baseball’s hardest throwers.
The Slider Suzuki Was Waiting For
On June 29 at Wrigley Field, Suzuki came up with the score tied at 2-2 in the ninth. Miller had entered after two Cubs reached against Jason Adam. Alex Bregman’s single loaded the bases, but a double play at the plate nearly ended Chicago’s chance.
Suzuki then faced Miller with two outs. According to MLB’s account of the game, Suzuki decided to look for a slider while remaining aware of Miller’s triple-digit fastball. He let the first slider go above the zone. The next one came over the heart of the plate.
Suzuki drove it toward the left-field ivy. The ball escaped Jase Bowen’s glove, Crow-Armstrong scored, and Chicago won 3-2 on the walk-off single.
Suzuki did not have to catch up to Miller’s best fastball. He recognized the pitch he wanted and capitalized when it stayed in a hittable spot. It would be a mistake, though, to assume Miller will show him the same pitch in the same location again.
Why the Next At-Bat Might Look Different
Miller’s résumé makes the June swing an exception, not a blueprint guaranteed to work. MLB’s season-ending leaders show he finished with 38 saves, a 1.67 ERA and 129 strikeouts in 70 innings. In the 2025 Wild Card Series, he struck out the first eight hitters he faced, including Suzuki on that 102.9 mph fastball. His 104.5 mph strikeout of Carson Kelly in Game 2 set a postseason velocity record in the pitch-tracking era.
There is a fresh reason to study him: Miller allowed three runs in the ninth inning against Arizona on September 26. San Diego still won 10-7. That outing does not establish a slider problem.
Suzuki has also found some momentum. Bleed Cubbie Blue noted he went 7-for-20 over five games against Miami and Boston after a slow start to September. If he gets Miller again, the challenge is deciding what to hunt without becoming vulnerable to that fastball.
The Padres can shorten a game by setting up Miller with Adrian Morejon. Chicago cannot count on seeing the closer, or on getting another slider over the plate. But Suzuki has already shown he can make one count when it arrives.
Cubs Slugger Has Beaten Mason Miller’s Slider. Will He See It Again?