Padres Coach Reveals What Surprises Him Most About $55 Million Pitcher

Jul 20, 2025; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; San Diego Padres starting pitcher Nick Pivetta (27) pitches against the Washington Nationals during the second inning at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images | Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

San Diego Padres pitching coach Ruben Niebla spoke about starting pitcher Nick Pivetta's dedication to the game and his ability to perform when he's needed.

The right-hander has been perhaps the most important pitcher for the Padres this season, starting 23 games and keeping an ERA of 2.94 through 143.2 innings pitched. His ERA+ of 144 leads all Padres starters except Michael King, who hadn't pitched since May before his start on Saturday.

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“I think the biggest thing that has surprised me was his ability to stay in the moment and actually rise to the occasion, rise to the moment, because of his conviction of what he has,” Niebla said to the San Diego Union-Tribune.

“And that was the one thing that I was like, ‘OK, what happens when stuff starts happening behind him? Is he able to, like, push through this, continue to make pitches, not try to overdo pitches, stay within himself and have that ability to have that confidence to be able to do that?’ And I think he’s shown that to us.

“He has confidence, and he’s a competitor. So he’s checking two major boxes. Because when he’s out there in the moment, you know that at least you’re always going to have those two. And so when you have those two, those eventually translate into the conviction of the pitch, and the conviction of the pitch shows up.”

Pivetta spent most of the last five seasons with the Red Sox, hovering just above a 4.00 ERA during his time there. He left Boston in the offseason and signed a four-year contract with the Padres, and has settled in nicely since coming to Petco Park.

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The 32-year-old pitched in the Padres' loss to the Red Sox on Friday, making just the third start this season in which he had given up five or more runs. He will hope to improve upon that in his next start — which will likely come against the San Francisco Giants — as they chase down the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL West.

The Padres are three games back from the Dodgers in the division, and will hope to close the gap Sunday after splitting the series with the Red Sox.

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