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San Diego Padres reliever Robert Suárez was quietly one of the best stories in baseball in 2022. Padres fans can now expect plenty more of him in the future. After entering MLB as a 31-year-old rookie, Suárez has signed a five-year, $46 million contract extension with the Padres, according to MLB Network's Jon Morosi. The deal reportedly includes an opt-out after three years. The contract is a reward for a stellar MLB debut season, as well as one of the more circuitous routes a pitcher can take to the majors.
Robert Suárez's path from Venezuela to the Padres is wild
A Venezuelan native, Suárez wasn't on the professional radar as a teenager, and was working as a supermarket security guard and construction worker in his native Caracas when most of his current peers were in the minor leagues. At that point, Suárez was pitching in Venezuelan amateur and independent leagues, about as far a serious pitcher can get from the majors. But a former teammate reportedly saw something in him, opening up the door for Suárez to get a shot in the Mexican Leagues at the age of 24. Suárez would post a 1.71 ERA in 47.1 innings for the Saraperos de Saltillo, generating enough interest to find a place in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball. He turned that into a bona fide career, holding a 2.81 ERA in five seasons split between the Hanshin Tigers and Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks, though he also had to undergo Tommy John surgery at one point. After six years in Japan, Suárez finally headed to MLB, signing a one-year deal with the Padres. The club believed his performance in Japan was real, as it gave him a $5 million salary, $1 million signing bonus and $5 million player option for 2023. The stuff played. Suárez finished the regular season with a 2.27 ERA and 61 strikeouts in 47.2 innings. He was one of the Padres' most trusted late-inning arms in the postseason, which worked right up until Bryce Harper got a hold of an admittedly good pitch in the NLCS. Even with that series-clinching home run, Suárez showed enough in his first MLB season to make him one of the most-wanted relievers in MLB free agency. The Padres had no qualms about betting on him again.
Daniel Weinman was crowned winner of the 2023 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event on Monday, taking home a record breaking $12.1 million in winnings. Weinman had to outlast the other 10,043 entrants to take home the prize and get his hands on his share of live poker’s largest ever prize pool – a staggering $93,399,900. As well as taking home the prize money, 35-year-old Weinman also got his hands on the WSOP Main Event bracelet. The huge bracelet contains 500 grams of 10-karat yellow gold, as well as 2,352 various precious gemstones.
Daniel Weinman won the World Series of Poker's main event world championship on Monday in Las Vegas, earning $12.1 million along the way. Playing in the tournament for a 16th year, Weinman was tops in a deep pool of 10,043 players vying for $93.39 million. His victory came after just 164 hands at the final table. "I was honestly on the fence about even coming back and playing this tournament," the 35-year-old Atlanta native told reporters afterward. Weinman's final table featured Jan-Peter Jachtmann, who landed in fourth place and took home $3 million, as well as Toby Lewis, who finished seventh and secured $1.42 million. According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the main event's entry pool far outpaced the previous record of 8,773 set in 2006. "I've always kind of felt that poker was kind of going in a dying direction, but to see the numbers at the World Series this year has been incredible," Weinman said. "And to win this main event, it doesn't feel real. I mean, [there's] so much luck in a poker tournament. I thought I played very well." Steven Jones finished second, securing $6.5 million. And Adam Walton settled for third and a $4 million prize.
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