The Mariners’ decision to let Eugenio Suárez slip by on waivers is looking worse by the day.
Back at the end of last month, the Reds made Suárez available, and the idea of a Seattle reunion made immediate sense to plenty of people. The Mariners, though, passed.
At the time, that already felt risky. Since then, it has only gotten uglier.
Suárez has answered with five home runs and 11 RBI over his last 15 games, posting a .946 OPS in that stretch. When Seattle had the chance to grab him, he was sitting on a .705 OPS, which was projected to be the worst of his Major League career since his rookie season in 2014.
But even then, the signs were there. He had already launched five home runs in August and carried a .862 OPS for the month.
Yes, adding him would have cost roughly $3 million for the rest of the season. But the Mariners had already opened up significant payroll by trading Luis Castillo to the White Sox, and that money is only part of the story anyway. The bigger issue is what Suárez might have meant in the clubhouse and on the field.
There’s still real affection for Suárez in Seattle, especially inside the room. Daniel Kramer previously reported the reaction on the Mariners’ team charter last year when he boarded the plane after arriving from the Diamondbacks: it was an eruption of cheers. That kind of energy matters, and in a season defined by inconsistency, the 35-year-old looked like the sort of player who could have helped a scattered team find its footing.
That point came up again Wednesday when MLB Network insider Jon Morosi joined Bob Stelton and Dave Wyman. After the Mariners clinched a losing record for the first time since 2020, Morosi said the one thing missing from this group was cohesion.
That word fits. And it’s hard not to wonder whether Suárez would have supplied some of it.
The timing makes the miss sting even more. When Seattle could have claimed him, the club was dealing with Brendan Donovan’s concussion and getting ready for a Blue Jays series that felt pivotal to its playoff hopes. Instead of getting a lift, the Mariners were swept, and that blow seemed to drain what was left of the momentum.
Maybe Suárez wouldn’t have changed everything. But the Mariners have also dropped six one-run games since passing on him, which only sharpens the regret. In a season full of wrong turns, this one is climbing toward the top of the list.
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