The Padres' newest dugout guest ... a black panther?

MIAMI -- Last year, there was the home run chain. This year, it’s been the polaroids. On Wednesday afternoon in Miami, there was a new addition to the Padres’ home run celebration: a large black panther statue.

The statue, which has lived in the Padres’ clubhouse and been taken care of on road trips by its “handler,” reliever Robert Suarez, made its first appearance in the dugout during San Diego’s 10-3 victory at loanDepot park.

“I don't even know where it came from, it just showed up one day,” said Jake Cronenworth, who hit a grand slam in the first inning to give the Padres a lead they never relinquished. After the slam, the second of Cronenworth’s career, he posed with the big cat for his home run polaroid.

“We were trying to bring a new spark in the clubhouse, and Feisty Tom seemed to have a little bit of that in him,” said starting pitcher Mike Clevinger, who allowed three runs on six hits and four walks over 4 1/3 innings.

It was Sean Manaea who dubbed the panther Feisty Tom, and it was likely Manaea (according to Cronenworth) who was responsible for Tom being in the dugout for Wednesday’s matinee.

Manaea denied that he had anything to do with Tom’s appearance.

“No no, not me,” he said. “He just showed up [in the dugout] honestly. I walked out there [today] and he was out there, I was like, 'Feisty Tom, what's up?' That's his name, at least that's what I keep calling him.

“First name that came to my head. Usually, that's how I name things, you know, comes from the heart. [Cats, they] like to be secretive at times, and today he just wanted to smell the fresh Miami air.”

Wednesday was a fitting time for the big cat and potential spark plug to make an appearance. Cronenworth’s slam marked the first lead the Padres had held over the Marlins in the three-game series and was the highlight of an inning filled with the offensive prowess seemingly absent from the first two games of the set.

It started with back-to-back singles from Juan Soto -- who extended his on-base streak to 22 games -- and Manny Machado, who had his eighth multi-hit game in a row. Then Josh Bell gave a masterclass in patience, loading the bases after he fouled off a fastball on a 3-2 count, then took a high four-seamer for the two-out walk. Then, the Crone Zone.

“[The early lead] proved to be worth it today for sure,” Clevinger said. “But yeah, it always gives you a little peace of mind, lets you kind of try to attack the zone a little bit more. I was just having a little bit of issue finding the zone today.”

Clevinger’s issues finding the zone -- which account for the righty recording just one strikeout on the night -- didn’t matter much thanks to the lead Crone handed him before he even took the mound. Plus, Clevinger had some help from the bullpen.

Adrian Morejon struck out a pair after loading the bases with a hit-by-pitch when he entered in the fifth. Four relievers (including Morejon) combined for 4 2/3 shutout innings, and allowed just one hit, which came in the seventh vs. Suarez.

Suarez allowed a leadoff single to Jon Berti before striking out a pair and inducing a groundout to get out of the seventh unscathed. That was the Marlins’ only attempt at a rally, and it was squashed as quickly as it started.

The Padres weren’t quieted so easily, stringing together hits and walks in the top of the ninth following a leadoff double from Bell, who entered the game 0-for-his-past-23. A few batters later, and with the bases loaded, Ha-Seong Kim hit a bases-clearing double.

“All those things [especially walks] ended up maybe not being the sexiest thing in the box score, but ended up providing us better at-bats and more production after that,” manager Bob Melvin said.

When asked about the big cat he’s responsible for, Suarez said that had no idea how it got into the dugout or where it came from.

“I don't really believe in luck,” Suarez said via an interpreter. “But you know, if the other guys think it brings us good luck, then I will make sure to take care of it.”

“Feisty Tom comes on board and just, you know, it's a good presence in the dugout,” Manaea said, though he wouldn’t pick up the panther for a picture when asked by a reporter.

“I don’t really mess with big cats like that.”