What Mariners lost when they failed to gain Eugenio Suárez off waivers from Reds

There was some fun for about five minutes when news came out about the Reds placing Eugenio Suárez on waivers, with thoughts immediately turning to the Mariners potentially making a claim. They were in a prime position to make it a reality as well, with one of the worst records of any viable contender and with waiver claims awarded in reverse standings order. In the end Suárez cleared waivers, leading to the question of why the M's didn't claim him?

Simply put, you would have to assume the Mariners just didn't want to spend effectively $3 million on a post-prime version of Suárez. And sure, objectively speaking, we can get this up to a point. However, this is about so much more than just looking at this from such a basic standpoint, beginning with the M's 0.0 bWAR from the third base position this season not exactly fixing itself.

Financially speaking, it's not as if the Mariners couldn't have afforded to fork out $3 million to pay the remainder of Suárez's salary for this season. And not just because they saved some money from trading Luis Castillo and his lucrative contract to the White Sox. No, this is an organization which is in a better financial position than most, to be able to bring the two-time All-Star back to Seattle for a third tour of duty.

As much as ownership presumably didn't want to fork out for Suárez, they missed the bigger picture of getting a potentially bigger return on their investment. He remains an extremely popular player in Seattle, in the clubhouse, in the front office and amongst the fanbase. That $3 million would have provided a shot in the arm for the players, with his infectious personality one of those positive intangibles which every team looks for.

Eugenio Suárez just seems to bring out the best in the Mariners both on and off the field

For goodness sake, as reported by Daniel Kramer of MLB.com last year following Suárez's trade from the Diamondbacks, there was an eruption of cheers when he boarded the Mariners' team charter. Everyone, whether it be players, clubhouse staff, coaches and even the media, stood up to hug him. You just can't buy that kind of love and affection.

Except, the M's could have for $3 million.

Sure, Suárez wasn't at his most productive during his second tenure in Seattle, but just having him in the lineup made them automatically more dangerous. In respect of the intangible he provided, the impact was there with a team which went 33-20 with him in the lineup, compared to 57-52 otherwise. And he still proved he could step up in big moments, with the number one example obviously being his grand slam in Game 5 of the ALCS versus the Blue Jays.

Further to this point, as much as Suárez has had a rough 2026 campaign overall in Cincinnati, he has come good at just the right time, with five home runs and 18 RBI contributing towards a .862 OPS during August. Ultimately, what was lost by not claiming him, was a vote of confidence in the Mariners' clubhouse and improved credibility with a fanbase that has gotten remarkably jaded throughout this season.

Ownership might well have saved themselves $3 million today. However, they lost out on something much more valuable, which could have made all the difference down the road come playoff time.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow