Red Sox Named ‘Best Fit’ For All-Star Slugger By MLB Insider

Boston Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow knows his offseason shopping spree isn’t done. He still needs to figure out how to replace third baseman Alex Bregman, who bolted for the Chicago Cubs on five-year, $175 million contract.

The obvious choice on the free-agent market is third baseman Eugenio Suarez. The two-time All-Star tied his career high last year with 49 home runs, yet strangely remains on the open market.

“I think the best fits to me would be Boston, Pittsburgh, maybe even Seattle again. But Boston, Pittsburgh are the best fits,” former MLB general manager Jim Bowden told the “Foul Territory” podcast.

“But there’s not a market for him and it’s been puzzling after 49 home runs,” Bowden added. “So I actually talked to a GM this morning on a team that’s a non-contending team. And I said, ‘Why don’t you sign Suarez since you have a spot for him that makes sense in the lineup and have a need. Why don’t you sign him for the first half of the year. Let him his 20 home runs in your ballpark then trade him at the deadline for a prospect.’

“And his response to me kind of raised my eyebrows,” Bowden noted. He said, ‘Well look at what he did last year. He was hitting 49 homers and we got to the trade deadline and there was no trade market for him. And Arizona barely got a decent return. So why would I want to spend the money for Suarez in the first half of the year for a fringe prospect that I trade for.’

“And he said, ‘I don’t think the market’s any better for him. Look at the free-agent market for him right now. He’s not getting hits. It’s not like he’s waiting for a better offer. He’s got people kick the tires but they are not pursing him, for whatever reason.’

“So look, I think the fact that he’s not a very good defender at third base with very limited range, hasn’t played a lot of first base so you’re looking at a DH that can play a little third and maybe you could put him at first kinda situation,” Bowden said.

“But the market, believe it or not, it’s hard to fathom but a 49-homer guy just doesn’t have the market right now, you know? Boston’s worried about the defense. Pittsburgh I think doesn’t want to spend much money any more after what they’ve already spent this offseason. So I find it fascinating where he’s at but the market just hasn’t been there. There’s nothing imminent. He’s not close to anything and I think somebody should swoop in and take a chance on him,” Bowden concluded.

In a story for The Athletic, Bowden went a bit deeper on Suarez’s potential in Boston.

“He’s hit .425 with four home runs and 14 RBIs in 44 plate appearances at Fenway Park — small sample size but huge results,” Bowden stated.

Question is, will Suarez’s power overcome deficiencies in his game?

The 34-year-old hit just .228 last season with 196 strikeouts.

In addition, Suarez isn’t exactly the game’s best fielder at the hot corner. He led the majors in errors at third base in 2016, committing 23 for the Cincinnati Reds. Suarez led the National League in errors at third base again in 2018 (19) and 2019 (17).