Why Ranger Suarez Is Worth the Hefty Price Tag Red Sox Paid

[Nick John]

After two-and-a-half months, the Boston Red Sox have finally signed a free agent. They improved upon their already strong rotation by bringing in Ranger Suárez on a five-year, $130 million contract. Suárez, who made his major league debut back in 2018 with the Philadelphia Phillies, will slot right into the rotation as the number two to ace Garrett Crochet.

Suárez originally signed with the Phillies as an international free agent out of Venezuela back in 2012 as a 16-year-old. The left-handed pitcher worked his way through the system and by 2018, made his Double-A, Triple-A, and major-league debut. In his short sample in the majors, Suárez made four appearances, three of them starts as he tossed 15 innings, had a 5.40 ERA and struck out 11 while walking six. The 2019 campaign saw Suárez opening the year with Triple-A Lehigh Valley, ranking as the team’s number 10 prospect at the time. Suárez wound up making a couple brief call-ups in June before receiving his final promotion on June 20.

Unlike in 2018, Suárez was used exclusively out of the bullpen as he made 37 appearances. The then-23-year-old wound up tossing 48 2/3 innings as he struck out 42 batters while walking 12. Thanks to his strong performance out of the bullpen, there was belief he would contend for a rotation spot in 2020, but his season was derailed from testing positive for COVID-19 right before Opening Day. By the time he was allowed to leave quarantine and begin rehabbing, it was already late August. In order to get him back sooner, the team moved him to the bullpen where he would make just three appearances, though he struggled mightily. In four innings, Suárez allowed nine earned runs and four walks compared to just one strikeout.

The 2021 season was more of the same for Suárez. The Phillies decided to have him open the season with Triple-A Lehigh Valley, where he didn’t make a single appearance before being recalled to the Phillies. His role changed across the season, originally serving as a multi-inning reliever. Suárez was eventually asked to fill in as the closer after the Phillies attempted to use two other relievers and they both struggled. Fortunately for the Phillies and Suárez, the team acquired Ian Kennedy at the trade deadline to become the closer while Suárez was moved once more, now into the rotation.

Upon that transition back to starting, Suárez was dominant. The left-hander made 12 starts and tossed 65 2/3 innings where he allowed just 11 earned runs. In that span, he struck out 65 batters and walked just 19. On the season as a whole, Suárez appeared in 39 games and threw 106 innings to the tune of a 1.36 ERA.

From that point on, he has been in the Phillies' rotation permanently. He made a career-high 29 starts in 2022, and then would go on to make 22, 27, and 26 starts respectively over the next three seasons. Since 2022, however, Suárez has missed time each season due to low back spasms in 2022, a left elbow strain and a right hamstring strain in 2023, lower back soreness in 2024, and lower back stiffness in 2025.

Despite the injuries, Suárez is a performer on the mound. As a starter with the Phillies, Suárez made 119 starts, going 42-32 with a 3.45 ERA. In total he tossed 666 innings while striking out 619 batters, also securing an All-Star appearance in 2024. More importantly, he allowed just 60 home runs in that span, showing an ability to keep the ball in the park during his career. While the southpaw's durability is a genuine concern (his career high for innings is 157 1/3, which he set in 2025), the quality of his innings has no debate.

And to add to it, he’s performed excellently in the playoffs.

To this point in his career, Suárez has appeared in 11 games in the playoffs with a career record of 4-1 with a 1.48 ERA across 42 2/3 innings. He's struck out 44 batters, walked 13 and allowed just three home runs.

The veteran pitcher will now slot into the rotation as the number two starter the Red Sox have wanted for more than a year. Whether he pitches after Crochet is unknown, however, as manager Alex Cora may choose to break the pair of lefties up and slot fellow rotation addition Sonny Gray between them. There is no doubt, however, that Suárez will serve as the bona fide No. 2 after Crochet, regardless of the rotation order.

Of course, as with all big free-agent contracts, there is a chance that he’ll fall off as the years go by. The fact that he doesn’t throw hard and relies on his sinker along with movement from his secondaries could (and probably will) delay that fact. By the time it does happen (as it invariably does for everyone), it shouldn’t be an issue for him to become the number four or five arm as the Red Sox will (hopefully) be relying on Crochet, Payton Tolle, and Connelly Early to carry the rotation.

The Red Sox can expect around 25 to 29 starts from Suárez based on his track record of health. And with those starts, they can expect All-Star worthy outings, as his worst season as a starter came in 2023 when he dealt with two injuries including an elbow strain. When healthy, there’s no denying he can be one of the top pitchers in baseball, as shown by the fact that he is tied for the 14th-highest fWAR since 2023 for starting pitchers.

To say he’s expected to take the ball every fifth day with the intent to win is the obvious statement. However, with his presence he will be able to help shoulder the load with Crochet and the younger pitchers. Last season, there were signs that Crochet was tiring down the stretch, but he pushed through as the team needed him. Now, he’ll have someone in the rotation to back him up when the toughest stretch of the season begins. He’ll also be able to provide postseason experience to the pitching staff. Yes, the team made the playoffs last season, but they played in three games. Crochet pitched one, Early pitched one, and Brayan Bello pitched the other. They didn’t get much experience from it, and Suárez can provide that in spades for the entire staff. He’ll be the guy the Red Sox send out in Game 2 hoping to either close out a series or take control of one.

Craig Breslow greatly improved the team with this signing. In a world of baseball where a pitcher isn’t needed to go seven innings anymore thanks to analytics and great bullpens, Suárez should be able to give the team great quality and length. The team is stronger and now has arguably one of (if not the) best rotation in the American League when you factor in their depth.

Teams won’t want to face the two-headed beast that is Crochet and Suárez in the playoffs and so long as the Red Sox improve their offense, they may emerge as the clear-cut favorite in the Junior Circuit behind their pair of southpaws.

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