The Cincinnati Reds are finally on the board with their first impact signing of the MLB offseason. After grazing into the MLB playoffs in 2025, the Reds are thought to be a team that could be sneaky competitive in 2026 if they make a few upgrades to their offense.
Well, ESPN’s Jeff Passan announced on Sunday that the Reds and slugger Eugenio Suárez are in agreement on a one-year, $15 million contract that includes a 2027 mutual option. Suárez should be familiar with Cincinnati, as he clubbed 189 home runs with the Reds over parts of six seasons.
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Reds Sign Eugenio Suárez to One-Year Deal
Eugenio Suárez was one of the hottest trade targets back in July, and he ended up being moved to the Seattle Mariners to finish the season, where he was visibly emotional when Seattle was eliminated from the playoffs.
2025 might have been the best season of Suarez’s career. He smashed 49 home runs and drove in 118 runs while with the Diamondbacks and Mariners. Suárez likely only received a one-year deal due to his age (34), but his power has not wavered because of his age.
Suárez played with the Reds from 2015 to 2021, and it is where he was named to his first All-Star appearance back in 2018. He followed that 2018 season up with a 49-home run season in 2019, and Suárez has a career total of 325 home runs.
He’s led his respective league in strikeouts three times, but that is just the type of player Eugenio Suárez is. 30 home runs per season is going to come with 150+ strikeouts.
GettyEugenio Suarez has been open to a reunion in Detroit in the past.
He had been on a torrid home run pace in 2025 with the Diamondbacks, which included a four-home run performance against the Braves. He slowed down a bit with the Mariners, but hitting in Seattle is tough, and Eugenio will likely be a lot more comfortable hitting in Great American Ballpark.
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What This Move Means for Reds:
This is a very solid signing for the Cincinnati Reds, who quietly have one of the best starting rotations in baseball, and a future Hall of Fame manager in Terry Francona.
Suárez will join a lineup that features Elly De La Cruz, Spencer Steer, Matt McLain, and Tyler Stephenson.
After scrapping their way to the 2025 MLB playoffs, the Reds are now poised to be in contention in the NL Central once again, which could very well be wide open come August.
While it’s a big splash considering Suárez was the highest-profile position player on the market, Cincinnati still could afford to add another veteran slugger like Suárez.
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Eugenio Suárez Signs $15 Million Contract With Cincinnati Reds In Reunion Deal