3 possible Eugenio Suarez replacements

The Mariners were expected to be active this offseason. With a few holes in the lineup, many expected them to pursue to the free agent market for a bat or 2, as well as look at dealing from their depth of starting pitching to acquire a controllable middle-of-the-order bat.

We also heard rumblings of teams being interested in acquiring Eugenio Suarez. On the heals of a gold glove level season, yes he was robbed, a lot of teams figured to be interested. But the Mariners traded Geno, a clubhouse leader and fan favorite, for a backup major league catcher and a high upside reliever, an underwhelming return if you ask me.

Sign Jeimer Candelario for 3 years $45 million...I like the addition. What's Next?

We looked at signing Candelario previously after rumors of a Geno trade first surfaced, and I really like his fit. In my opinion, with shedding Geno's contract, I think this signing becomes the most realistic. Candelario. The Mariners have obviously placed an emphasis on cutting back on the strikeouts and Candelario fits that mold to a tee. He has a career 2.35% K rate and walks a solid amount at 9.6%. His bat would fit really well into the middle of this lineup as a switch hitter and could eventually play some first base or DH.

Trade for Bo Bichette....Yes Please!

While signing Candelario, in my opinion, is the most likely course of action the Mariners take, this perhaps is the biggest swing for the fences the Mariners could take. This would take a big package certainly including Miller or Woo and I wouldn't be surprised if the Blue Jays asked for Logan Gilbert.

Bo Bichette could immediately play short stop or third base and is one of the best hitters in the game, with a career 127 wRC+ and a .299/.340/.487 slash line. Again, he fits the mold of cutting out strikeouts with a career 20.8% strikeout rate. He would fit in anywhere in the top 4 of your lineup and gives this lineup another elite level bat. This would signal to Mariners fans everywhere that this team is going for it and is ready to win, something that I think all of us might need a bit of.

The Mariners certainly have been confident about acquiring their types of players and extending them. Maybe the Mariners don't give out a huge contract to a current free agent but follow their recent patterns. Bichette will be a free agent after the 2025 offseason where he will enter the 2026 season as a 28-year-old. I could see the Mariners acquiring him and extending him on a deal similar to Xander Bogaerts, maybe an 8-year deal worth 30-35 million per year.