Suarez, the 34-year veteran, hit .228/.298/.526 with 49 home runs and 118 RBI in 2025. However, he had a tale of two seasons. He started the year at Arizona and was an All-Star. He hit .248/.320/.576 for the Diamondbacks in 106 games, but they traded him to the Seattle Mariners at the deadline. While he continued to hit home runs with the Mariners – 13 of them in 53 games – he struggled to do much else, hitting just .189 with an on-base percentage of .255.
Seattle has been a place where a lot of guys don’t have it so good. There are a few theories about it, including that there is something “off” about the batter’s eye in the ballpark. Suarez has played in 365 games for the Mariners organization during his career, hitting .227/.317/.424. In his seven years with Cincinnati he hit .253/.335/.476 and in his 254 games with Arizona he hit .253/.319/.513.
That’s all important to note because one of those hitters would help a lot more than the other. Cincinnati adding an .800+ OPS hitter to the middle of their order who can hit .250 and boast plenty of pop would likely do wonders for a lineup that has struggled to find power. But a sub.750 OPS hitter in the middle of their lineup wouldn’t move the needle that much. The Reds and Suarez both hope the .800+ OPS version emerges in 2026.
The question of what this does to the position on the defensive side of things is now also up for discussion. Passan’s report notes that the infielder is expected to play most of his at-bats as a designated hitter. Suarez has rarely spent time as a designated hitter in his career. He has played just six innings at first base in his career. He spends almost all of his time at third base, where he has played more than 150 games over the past three years.
Last season, the Reds acquired Ke’Bryan Hayes at the trade deadline. He’s not much of a hitter, but he might be the best defensive player in baseball. He makes $7,000,000 in 2026 and is under contract until at least 2029, with a team option for $12,000,000 in 2030, including a $6,000,000 buyout.
If Hayes doesn’t go to the bench, that adds some complexity as to how everyone fits into the lineup. You might guess that this means more time for Suarez at first base or designated hitter, which means the spots for Spencer Steer and Sal Stewart are up in the air as to where they play or how often they play, and if true, that means that will trickle down to someone else as well.
When the move becomes official, we’ll likely hear from president of baseball operations Nick Krall or general manager Brad Meador. That would probably shed some more light on the situation.
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