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The Boston Red Sox wasted no time after missing Alex Bregman. Days after the third baseman signed with the Cubs, the Boston Red Sox voted, reportedly agreeing to a five-year, $130 million deal with Rangers starter Su\u00e1rez on Wednesday, according to USA Today’s Bob Nightengale.<\/p>\n
The 30-year-old Su\u00e1rez is coming off a season in which he posted a 3.20 ERA over 157 1\/3 innings with the Philadelphia Phillies.<\/p>\n
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Since converting to a full-time starter in 2022, Su\u00e1rez has been an effective pitcher on the mound. Over the past four seasons, he owns a 3.59 ERA over 588 1\/3 innings. That was good for a 117 ERA+, meaning his ERA was 17% better than league average over the past four seasons.<\/p>\n
However, the left-hander has dealt with minor injuries in each season during that span and has never started more than 30 games in a single regular season. Notably, the last time Su\u00e1rez suffered an elbow injury was in 2023. He was able to bounce back from the issue that season and was still posting solid numbers. His injury two years ago did not affect his arm. While he’s not exactly a workaholic, Su\u00e1rez is averaging 26 starts a year through 2022, so he’s not out of harm’s way.<\/p>\n
His performance since joining the Phillies rotation is enough to make Su\u00e1rez one of the most desirable pitchers on the free agent market, ranked No. 9 on Yahoo Sports’ list. With Su\u00e1rez, Dylan Cease and Tatsuya Imai off the board, that leaves Framber Valdez and Zach Gallen as the remaining big names on the first base market.<\/p>\n
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Su\u00e1rez is an interesting signing for the Red Sox, who also acquired veteran Sonny Gray this winter in an effort to improve the team’s rotation. With Garrett Crochet expected to once again serve as the team’s ace, Su\u00e1rez, Gray and Bryan Bello should round out the top four in rotation. From there, the Red Sox have plenty of other options, including Connelly Early, who showed promise in limited starts last season. The team could also consider Kyle Harrison, who was acquired as part of the Rafael Devers trade, or Payton Tolle, who remains one of the team’s top prospects despite struggling in his brief start in the majors. In addition to those three, the Red Sox must return Kutter Crawford, Tanner Houck and Patrick Sandoval from injury in 2026.<\/p>\n
As a result, it could be argued that starting pitching wasn’t the most pressing need for the Red Sox. But as any MLB team will attest, you can never have enough starting pitching, and Su\u00e1rez makes the team a force at the top of the rotation. If the Red Sox reach the postseason in 2026, he’s a clear candidate to get a playoff start.<\/p>\n
Despite his success on the mound, Su\u00e1rez doesn’t get a ton of publicity, due to his approach. He doesn’t throw very hard by today’s standards, with a fastball averaging 91.3 mph last season. As a result, Su\u00e1rez is not an elite striker and needs to rely on positioning and good command of stymie strikers. That means, all his time as a startup, this method has worked. Su\u00e1rez averaged opposing hitters a 31.1% strikeout rate last season, one of the best stats in MLB.<\/p>\n
That success was largely due to Su\u00e1rez’s breakthrough. While his fastball, sinker and cutter tend to get hit hard, his changeup, curve and slider are real weapons. Opposing hitters hit .203 in Su\u00e1rez’s changeup last season. They posted even worse averages against his curveball and slider.<\/p>\n
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The Red Sox are the right team to capitalize on that potential. While Boston emerged as a surprise contender at the start of the 2024 MLB season, the team did so thanks to an approach that greatly reduced the use of the four-seam fastball. The Red Sox finished the year throwing four-seam fastballs 37.1% of the time, the lowest rate in the majors.<\/p>\n
That strategy didn’t continue in 2025, as Boston jumped to 14th in fastball usage, but the team’s willingness to run away from the field suggests the Red Sox could see value in Su\u00e1rez that other teams have overlooked. And a change in his technique or pitch usage could lead to further development from a player who already has one All-Star appearance under his belt.<\/p>\n
While Su\u00e1rez’s approach may be a cause for concern in the long run given his lack of hitting and limited speed, the Red Sox may be the right team to take advantage of his unique approach.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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