The Pittsburgh Pirates have yet to add any legitimate offensive help this offseason, even though general manager Ben Cherington promises they would bring in some bats.
Of course, there is still plenty of time for the Pirates to do that, even if they struck out on big names like Kyle Schwarber and Josh Naylor.
Advertisement
There are a bunch of remaining free agents Pittsburgh can attempt to sign, and Bleacher Report’s Zachary D. Rymer has identified an intriguing fit for the club: Eugenio Suarez.
In a piece where Rymer predicted landing spots for some of the top players on the market, he connected Suarez to Steel City.
“Yet no team truly needs Suarez quite like the Pirates,” Rymer wrote. “He’s one of the top home run hitters in recent history, and they hit 31 fewer home runs than any other team this season.”
Advertisement
Rymer qualified his statement by saying that the Pittsburgh may need to overpay to get Suarez to sign because of its pitcher-friendly ballpark.
Eugenio Suarez. Credit:Â John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images.
“The sheer power hostility of PNC Park is a complicating factor here, so the Pirates would have to make Suarez an offer worth his while,” Rymer wrote. “But they do seem eager to spend, to a point where they reportedly offered Kyle Schwarber a club-record deal.”
Well, not only would the Bucs have to overpay Suarez because of the park, but also because he is a 34-year-old veteran who would probably prefer to sign with a World Series contender.
Advertisement
Such is the difficulty of navigating free agency for the Pirates, who have made just three playoff appearances since 1993 and haven’t made a trip in a decade.
Suarez split 2025 between the Arizona Diamondbacks and Seattle Mariners, slashing .228/.298/.526 with 49 home runs and 118 RBI over 657 plate appearances.
It should be noted that the slugger did the vast majority of his damage with the Diamondbacks, as he managed a meager .682 OPS in 53 games with the Mariners.
Advertisement
Regardless, Suarez has been one of the most consistent power hitters in baseball for years now and has totaled 325 long balls since entering the big leagues in 2014.
He strikes out a ton and isn’t exactly the greatest on base guy, but the Pirates are in dire need of power, and Suarez certainly provides that.