Marlins' Cishek not hitting the panic button after 3rd blown save

Miami Marlins right-hander Steve Cishek is showing just how volatile the closer position is.

After converting 73-of-79 opportunities over the past two seasons, Cishek has already blown three saves in nine chances this year.

The 28-year-old entered Sunday's game against the San Francisco Giants with a 2-1 lead, but walked off the mound with the loss after surrendering two runs off a pair of hits in 2/3 of an inning.

"I don’t want to push the panic button now and reset everything," Cishek told Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald. "I just want to keep plugging away and grinding. Things can only get better from here."

Cishek had been excellent leading up to this season since taking over the closer's role for Miami in 2012, but a lot of hard contact coupled with him walking batters at a higher-than-usual rate has led to a 8.18 ERA and 1.81 WHIP through 12 appearances.

"Lack of execution," Cishek explained. "I'm not executing pitches like I typically do."

Should Cishek continue to struggle, the Marlins could bring in right-hander A.J. Ramos to close games. The 28-year-old owns a 1.06 ERA and 21 strikeouts through 17 innings this season.