One of MLB’s biggest power threats has finally landed with a team in 2026. Slugging third baseman Eugenio Suárez reportedly agreed to a one-year, $15 million deal with the Cincinnati Reds on Sunday, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan.
Suárez, 34, is coming off one of his best seasons in the majors, in which he clubbed 49 home runs between the Arizona Diamondbacks and Seattle Mariners. The new deal with Cincinnati reportedly includes a mutual option for the 2027 season, too.
Power has always been Suárez’s calling card. In 12 seasons in the majors, he’s clubbed 325 home runs. Since 2014, that number ranks seventh in MLB, ahead of players like Bryce Harper and Freddie Freeman.
Advertisement
While Suárez settled in as a player who would hit roughly 30 home runs per season, he managed to take his pop to the next level in 2025. Suárez got off to a tremendous start in Arizona last season, blasting 36 home runs in just 106 games. He posted what would have been a career-high .576 slugging percentage with the team and was voted to the All-Star team for just the second time in his career.
With the D-Backs flailing, however, Suárez was traded to Seattle. While Suárez was able to add 13 more home runs with the Mariners, he struggled following the trade. Suárez hit just .189/.255/.428 with the Mariners.
It marked the second time in his career in which Suárez faltered with the team. The slugger — who played for the Mariners in 2022 and 2023 — had a .234/.327/.423 slash line, with 53 home runs, during his first stint with the team. Those struggles led to the Mariners trading Suárez to the Diamondbacks following the 2023 MLB season. Suárez quickly rebounded in Arizona, getting his career back on track.
While Suárez is one of the biggest power threats in the game, his approach comes with a few downsides. Strikeouts have been a consistent problem for Suárez, as he’s led the league in the stat in three separate seasons. That approach has fueled Suárez’s poor batting averages. Suárez is a career .246 hitter, though has only exceeded that number once over the past six seasons. He can make up for that somewhat by taking walks, but he’s not an elite plate-discipline guy and posted a lowly .298 on-base percentage last season. That figure ranked near the bottom of the league among qualified hitters.
Advertisement
That all-or-nothing approach, combined with Suárez’s age, add a fair amount of risk to a player coming off a 49-home run season. The Reds took the plunge on Suárez for his ability to pop home runs at a high rate.
Despite his age, that seems like a safe bet. Expecting much else from Suárez at this point in his career is a risk, one that will only get worse as he continues to age.
