Pete Fairbanks threw a pitch that appeared well outside the strike zone. The frustration on his face made the Miami Marlins quickly realize something was wrong. After just six pitches in the ninth inning on Monday, the closer had to walk off the mound with a trainer. Many feared that his nerve issue had returned just days after his comeback from the injured list. 

“Nerve irritation, and if it’s bugging him again, I’m afraid that may right there have been the last pitch we see him throw as a Marlin. Yeah, I almost could read his lips and say it’s the same thing,” the broadcasting booth said as Fairbanks was leaving the field. 

And it looked like he was uttering the words “F*** me,” capturing the frustration of yet another setback. 

Fairbanks entered the ninth to save a 7-6 lead against the Arizona Diamondbacks. He delivered a slider to Gabriel Moreno, and it turned out to be a strike. But the remaining pitches were wild. He threw one pitch after another outside the zone, as five of his six pitches were called balls. 

After throwing his final pitch, he appeared frustrated as he flexed his right hand. It was his second appearance since returning from the injured list, where he had been sidelined with irritation to the right median nerve. The issue has been causing his hand to go numb after he throws a pitch.

“To lose sensation and proprioception of your arm is never a fun thing,” Fairbanks said after the game. “There’s no precise way to figure out when it happens. I just start losing proprioception, and the sleeping feeling comes back.”

Pete Fairbanks signed a 1-year, $13 million contract with the Marlins for 2026. That means he will enter free agency at the end of this season. With his one-year contract set to expire after the season, the latest setback could raise questions about his future with Miami.

“He’s certainly frustrated,” said manager Clayton McCullough. “I feel bad for Pete. He’s worked hard to try to come back from this, and then to go back out, second appearance off the IL, and have a similar feeling that he did, I feel for him right now.”

Notably, the closer didn’t have a great year with the Marlins. Although he has 19 saves and 2 holds, he is struggling with a 6.31 ERA. What’s more frustrating for him is that he has already been on the IL twice this year. 

Fairbanks first dealt with the issue during a relief appearance on April 27 at Dodger Stadium. He was placed on the injured list the next day because of the nerve irritation and returned a little over two weeks later. Although he was able to pitch through the summer, the problem resurfaced after he threw just five pitches on Aug. 24, forcing him to shut things down once again.

This second time, however, Fairbanks said the numbness was no longer limited to his fingers and had spread through his entire arm. He later traveled to Pensacola, Fla., to see a specialist and undergo treatment.

“Having this is an impossibly frustrating thing to deal with,” Fairbanks added further. “Because for the most part, the motor output is there. But everything else, physically or neurologically, whatever the proper word is, it’s just not there.”

The Marlins’ playoff hopes are hanging by a thread as they are 8.5 games behind the last National League Wild Card spot. They only have 11 games remaining in the regular season. The D’backs, on the other hand, are 2.5 games behind the San Diego Padres, who are occupying the final Wild Card spot. Both teams are fighting for survival. 

But Pete Fairbanks’ fight is probably much more frustrating. And without a definite solution, the 32-year-old’s career might face critical questions.