PITTSBURGH – It’s been a week so tough for Eugenio Suárez that teammates have rallied in support of him and other team personnel from Venezuela in the aftermath of this week’s devastating earthquakes in his home country of Venezuela.
Suárez said he learned his loved ones were safe after tracking them down the past few days but declined Friday, because of heavy emotions, to talk more about his thoughts on the powerful back-to-back earthquakes that have claimed more than 1,400 lives, according to the latest reports.
So when he delivered the stunning, three-run homer in the ninth when the Reds were down to their last strike, the emotions rushed through like few times before in his career – Suarez gesturing emphatically with both hands to the sky as he rounded first base and hugging teammates hard when he got back to the dugout.
“Every homer is very special, but this one, you know … This homer is very special, and I pointed to God because he deserved all the glory,” said Suárez, whose three-run, opposite-field shot lifted the Reds to a 9-7 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates.
“He put me in that position at that time, and I was ready for something special, doing it for me, for the team and for all the situation that we have had in the last five days in Venezuela. You always have your country on your heart, and you want to do something for them, too, to tell everybody that even if we play baseball we feel their pain, too.”
It clinched the Reds’ first series win over a division opponent this season and their third series win in their last four series overall.
Whether it’s the start of something bigger for the competitive fortunes of a team that still resides in last place as it reached the halfway mark in the season, it was one of most powerful moments in the season, personally and emotionally for many of the Reds, who have rallied in support of Suárez and other team personnel this week.
Before the game Saturday, the Reds held a team meeting to offer support to victims of earthquake zone in the northern region of the country.
Bullpen catcher Jose Duarte, who has family outside the most heavily impacted region, is working with them back home to get resources from the team to people in need, Suárez said.“We appreciate all the team has done, and the front office have done a really good job to help us,” Suárez said. “We collected a bunch of money to buy supplies for our people in Venezuela.
“We appreciate that a lot.”
The Reds organization has committed resources from its community fund to help victims, said team trainer Tomas Vera, who is from Venezuela and also helping with the effort and looking for more ways to contribute to an effort that may take months just to dig out from dozens of collapsed buildings.
More than that, the emotions have run heavy throughout the clubhouse from the time the team reconvened following the team’s off day that coincided with much of the initial confirmed reports out of the country.
“They have been showing a lot of support for us,” Suárez said.
“I can’t imagine what families are going through there,” said pitcher Chase Burns, who powered through the first six innings of this one to hand a lead to the bullpen. “I’m just trying to help as much as I can. Anything I can do for them, mentally, if it’s helping them out, talking to them, sending back money over there.
“My prayers go out to their families in Venezuela.”
After Noelvi Marte won Friday’s game with an eighth-inning home run, he took time before answering media questions about the game to talk about what’s going on in Venezuela.
“Everybody in this locker room, everybody, played for them,” said Marte, who’s from the Dominican Republic. “Even myself, I wore a yellow (sleeve) on my left arm because I was honoring my Venezuelan friends.
“I know the hard situation they’re going through right now,” he added. “And I want to make sure that they know that we’re praying for them and we hope for the best outcome from this.”
Suárez said Marte approached him before the series opener to show him the yellow sleeve and what it meant.
“As a Latin player you appreciate that from him,” Suárez said. “He told me right before the game that he wore that for our country. That’s something that you have in mind and have in your heart. It’s very kind of him to do that for us and to show that support for us and for my country.”
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Heavy-hearted Eugenio Suárez wins it for Reds on 9th-inning home run
Reporting by Gordon Wittenmyer, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Gordon Wittenmyer, Cincinnati Enquirer | USA TODAY Network
