Pirates Named Fit for Mariners Third Baseman

His best success came in 2018 with the Cincinnati Reds, slashing .283/.366/.526 for an OPS of .892 in 143 games with 34 home runs, earning an All-Star nod.

Suárez also made history this season, hitting four home runs in an 8-7 loss to the Atlanta Braves at Chase Field on April 26. He was just the 19th player in MLB history to hit four home runs in a game, the third player to do so in a game he lost and the second player to do hit all four home runs in four plate appearances. 

Why the Pirates Would Benefit from Signing Eugenio Suárez

The Pirates struggled massively from the plate this past season, especially with a lack of power.

They hit 117 home runs as a team in 2025, the lowest mark in the MLB and 31 home runs less then the next team, the St. Louis Cardinals, who hit 148. Pittsburgh also had the worst OPS (.655) and slugging percentage (.350) in all of the MLB.

They also haven't had a strong hitting third baseman, moving on from Gold Glove Award winner Ke'Bryan Hayes ahead of the trade deadline, sending him to the Reds on July 30. 

Hayes, who was in the middle of an eight-year, $70 million contract with the Pirates, finished this season with the lowest slugging percentage (.306) and the second lowest OPS (.596), plus the 14th lowest on-base percentage (.290) and 24th lowest batting average (.235). 

Suárez would serve as a massive boost for the Pirates, with only five other players having more home runs than him since 2018. He has never hit less than 21 home runs in season in his career where he played more than a 100 games, which is more than any Pirates player had this season, with center fielder Oneil Cruz leading with 20 home runs.

Could the Pirates Afford to Sign Him?

The Pirates notoriously have had low payrolls under owner Bob Nutting and rarely spend much in free agency. They haven't gotten close to a $100 million Opening Day payroll since 2016 and have only ranked outside of the bottom five Opening Day payrolls for three seasons, 2015-17.

Pittsburgh hasn't signed a free agent position player to a multi-year deal since John Jaso, who signed a two-year, $8 million deal on Dec. 23, 2015, and the last free agent to a multi-year deal since right-handed starting pitcher Iván Nova, who signed a three-year, $26 million deal on Dec. 27, 2016

This has hurt the Pirates, who haven't made the postseason since 2015, marking a decade missing the playoffs each year, and seven consecutive losing seasons. These are both the second longest streaks in the MLB, just shorter than the Angels, who are one season longer.

Spotrac puts the market value of Suarez at two years, $29.9 million, or about $15 million per season. That would make him, if the Pirates signed him, the highest paid position player and the second highest paid player in 2026, behind right-handed starting pitcher Mitch Keller, who will make $16.9 million.

It's likely the Pirates could move Keller, creating even more space on their payroll, or could use the money they saved from trading Hayes and right-handed relief pitcher David Bednar, which is around $14 million for 2026 and sign Suárez.

The Pirates don't normally spend the money that other teams do in free agency, but Suárez is one player they could afford and keep on a short deal, that would bolster their top pitching, with the likes of Paul Skenes, and make a run at the playoffs next season.