NEW YORK -- Marlins closer Pete Fairbanks did the hard part in Friday night’s 9-7 walk-off loss in 10 innings to the Mets at Citi Field.
With the placed runner at second base and slugger Juan Soto at the plate to open extras, Fairbanks induced a first-pitch flyout to center on a cutter at the top of the zone.
Fairbanks kept doing what he was supposed to do against the next batter, MJ Melendez, by getting ahead in the count, 0-2, on consecutive fastballs.
When assistant pitching coach Rob Marcello -- who calls pitches from the dugout -- signaled for the next offering, Fairbanks shook him off to throw another heater. This time, his 98.4 mph four-seamer found the left-handed-hitting Melendez’s wheelhouse for the game-winning two-run homer.
“I wanted the same result as the [pitch] before, I just happened to not throw it in the same spot in which you can get the good result,” Fairbanks told MLB.com. “So maybe that'll be the switch we need, just no [shake-offs] the rest of the year."
The Marlins signed Fairbanks to a one-year, $13 million deal in December, making it the largest free-agent contract for a reliever in franchise history. A ballclub that nearly made the postseason and played a ton of close games in 2025 finally had its proven closer, one that would join an already solid bullpen and potentially put Miami over the top.
Through the first 16 appearances of Fairbanks’ Marlins career, it hasn’t exactly played out that way for Miami (26-32).
Including Friday’s loss, Fairbanks has allowed 12 earned runs on 13 hits -- including three homers -- with 21 strikeouts and seven walks in 14 1/3 innings. Fairbanks has been scored upon in seven of his outings and has gone 6-for-8 in save opportunities.
“This has been a chaotic two months, but we're going to turn the page with this one, make sure to wish my wife a happy birthday first thing in the morning tomorrow, and then do what I feel it is that I'm capable of, because I feel like this has been a trying stretch, mainly from results, not from what I feel like I can control,” Fairbanks said.
It has been a disjointed 2026 thus far for Fairbanks, who began the season by recording back-to-back saves.
With his wife Lydia expecting, Fairbanks opened the April 5 series finale vs. the Yankees in the Bronx and gave up his first runs as a Marlin. He didn’t pitch again for nine days, due to a combination of being on the paternity list and a lack of save chances, before losing a late lead in Atlanta. Fairbanks would go on to save three games in a four-day stretch against the Brewers and Cardinals before he allowed three runs in the ninth and took the loss on the road against the Dodgers, as he experienced nerve irritation and landed on the injured list.
Upon his return, Fairbanks coughed up a lead to his former club at Tropicana Field but picked up the win. Heading into Friday, he looked more like himself by tossing three consecutive scoreless outings.
“It's like the drop at Mr. Freeze in Six Flags St. Louis: It's either perfectly high or perfectly low,” Fairbanks said. “There's been no middle ground of the roller coaster. It's either been lights-out or it's been every light is on. Again, I'm going to try not to lose any sleep about it. It's just a reality that things can feel great and [I can] do things [like] control the count, be ahead in the count, do the things that you can control, and the results can still suck.”
A deeper look into Fairbanks’ numbers shows some bad luck at play.
Entering Friday, Fairbanks had a 3.23 Expected ERA, which takes into account the amount of contact and the quality of that contact in an attempt to credit the pitcher or hitter for the moment of contact, not for what might happen to that contact thanks to other factors like ballpark, weather or defense. That figure was comparable to last year’s xERA (3.09). Though Fairbanks didn't qualify, his 3.23 xERA and 6.91 ERA had a 3.68 difference, which would be fifth largest.
“Everything expected I don't think matches what's happening,” Fairbanks said. “I'm fortunate that I continue to have the trust in those situations to right it to where everybody around thinks it's supposed to be. I hopefully am able to pay that off and get back to doing what I've done [in the past].”
One aspect that differs from 2025 to 2026 is Fairbanks’ 16.1% barrel rate entering Friday, compared to his 4.8% (93rd percentile) mark last season. That would be the third-largest year-to-year increase in the Majors.
In terms of arsenal, Fairbanks is using his cutter more (29% vs. 4%). His fastball shape is slightly different, with less induced vertical break and more arm-side run due to a lowered arm angle. But the expected results have been comparable.
“Stuff's been great,” manager Clayton McCullough said. “… Not worried about Pete at all.”