The 2024-25 MLB offseason is all but over. Nearly every notable free agent is off the board (with a few exceptions), and fans are ready to turn their attention to the games played on the field rather than on social media.
However, it's never too early to look ahead to next offseason, which will feature yet another star-studded class of free agents. Kyle Tucker and Vladimir Guerrero Jr., both squarely in their prime and mid-20s, are the headliners, but the class also features stars like Dylan Cease, Zac Gallen, Devin Williams, and others.
With such prodigious talent making itself available to all 30 teams, it's natural that a few quality players will fall through the cracks. However, there's one veteran quietly slugging in the vaunted NL West who should be in line for one final sizable deal if he continues playing the way he has over the past three seasons.
Eugenio Suárez is next offseason's sleeper free agent
It might seem like a stretch to call a guy with one All-Star appearance on his résumé one of the most notable free agents next offseason, but that's what Eugenio Suarez is.
Over the past three seasons, spent with the Seattle Mariners and Arizona Diamondbacks, Suarez is slashing .241/.325/.439 (116 wRC+) with 162-game averages of 29 home runs, 98 RBIs, and 3.2 bWAR.
By all accounts, he's a middle-of-the-order slugger with serious pop. He's also extremely durable, having played in 143 or more games in every single seasons (excluding the COVID-shortened 2020 season) since becoming a full-time regular in 2016.
And though he's not known as a defensive wizard, he's actually a strongly above-average third baseman. Over the last two seasons, Suarez has been worth 15 Outs Above Average in almost 2,800 innings at the hot corner.
Now in the final season of a seven-year, $66 million extension signed with the Cincinnati Reds in 2018 — he's playing on a $15 million club option in 2025 — Suarez is primed for another strong season in the middle of Arizona's deep lineup.
So, why is a player of his caliber flying under the radar? Well, for starters, Suarez will be 34 by the time next offseason rolls around, and 35 by July 2026. He's simply too old to command the kind of long-term commitment Tucker and Guerrero will, but he could be primed for a short-term, high-AAV deal, akin to the one his former teammate Christian Walker signed with the Houston Astros this winter.
Beyond his age, Suarez also has a huge strikeout problem. He's led the league in strikeouts three times (2019, 2022, 2023), and his strikeout rate in his two seasons in Seattle was a whopping 31.0%. Even for a guy with his power and patience (career 9.8% walk rate), that's a tough pill to swallow in the heart of the order.
However, in his first season with the Diamondbacks in 2024, Suarez made adjustments to his approach, namely becoming more aggressive early in the count. Though it led to a decreased walk rate, he slashed his strikeout rate by more than three full percentage points while keeping his exit velocity numbers in line with his career norms. The result? Less strikeouts, and his highest batting average (and second-highest OPS) since 2019.
As a veteran with holes in his game, Suarez isn't going to demand a mind-melding contract next winter. But as a key piece to a contender's offseason, the third baseman is going to do quite well for himself, while also ensuring his next fanbase is supplied with plenty of home runs.