Eugenio Suarez Will Rake For The Diamondbacks
Eugenio Suarez is a premier power bat in baseball. Suarez, playing for the defending National League Champion Arizona Diamondbacks, has the potential to be a truly under-the-radar gem of a move. I believe Eugenio Suarez will be a major contributor for the Diamondbacks this season.
The Diamondbacks dealt for the 32-year-old in November as the first of their moves this offseason, replacing veteran Evan Longoria, who has been contemplating retirement. Bringing Suarez in is a massive upgrade at third base. The former All-Star has a proven track record of big production, though the main trade-off is a lot of swing and miss in Suarez’s game.
Not only led the league in strikeouts in back-to-back seasons with 214 last year. According to Baseball Savant, Suarez had a whiff rate of 32.8 percent, which is also one of the worst in baseball. Long story short: Arizona fans should expect big swings from Eugenio Suarez, for better or worse. Along with that, he has the ability to barrel baseballs and hit them for home runs with 30-plus homerun potential. He proved that with the Mariners in 2022 with a line of 31 home runs, 87 RBIs and a 129 OPS+.
Let’s also mention his monster seasons with the Cincinnati Reds, where he hit at least 34 homers and brought in over 100 runs in back-to-back seasons. The Diamondbacks were 22nd in the league in home runs, with only five players on their roster hitting at least ten. Compare that to the team who beat them in the World Series, the Texas Rangers, who had twice that amount. Suarez will certainly help in that department, with his sweet spot and barrel percentages being in the top 15 percent in all of baseball.
A new wrinkle in Suarez’s game it seems is his defense, being one of the top defenders at third base. A part of the 90th percentile in Fielding Run Value, although it remains to be seen if last season was just an anomaly. However, it does seem important to mention.
Regardless of Eugenio Suarez’s flaws in his game. His strengths are exactly what this Diamondbacks team is looking for. Suarez will bring the power, will drive in runs and play solid defense at third base every day. According to FanGraphs, Suarez is projected to have a stat line of 22 home runs and 75 RBIs. I believe Suarez can and will sore past these numbers.
Arizona doubling down on their World Series appearance is exactly what other teams should be striving for. It’s brought in established big leaguers like Eduardo Rodriguez to bolster a young rotation and added more productive bats in Joc Pederson and Suarez.
In Suarez’s case, he has the potential for a good Arizona squad to be the premier power bat of this offense. Complimenting the tremendous talent already occupying this lineup on a mission to get back to late October baseball. I’m watching Suarez in Arizona, anticipating another monster season from him. This time in the desert.
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