Red Sox suddenly add big-money No. 2 starter in free agency
The complexion of the Red Sox’ offseason has changed after adding what should be their new No. 2 starting pitcher.
The Boston Red Sox have come from the clouds to make a significant upgrade in their starting rotation.
As first reported Wednesday by Jon Heyman, the Red Sox are signing left-handed pitcher Ranger Suarez, formerly of the Philadelphia Phillies. Bob Nightengale added the numbers: it's a five-year deal for $130 million for Suarez ($26 million AAV), a Scott Boras client that represented a "pivot" for the Red Sox after losing out on Alex Bregman. It sounds like the Red Sox didn't mess around with the contract, either, as Nightengale also reported that there are no deferrals or opt-out clauses in Suarez's deal.
Suarez, 30, is coming off a season in which he posted a 3.20 ERA in 26 starts, striking out 151 in 157 1/3 innings, while going 12-8 for Philly. What stands out about Suarez is his ability to keep the ball in the park. He didn't quite pitch enough innings to qualify over the full 2025 season, but among those with at least 150 IP, he finished eighth in the majors with an 8.8% home run-to-fly ball ratio, and 12th in homers allowed per nine innings with 0.8.
The veteran is also efficient, with a walk rate of only 5.8% (17th in baseball). His bread & butter is inducing weak ground balls, as he finished with the 16th-highest ground ball percentage and the ninth-highest rate of soft contact (18.9%).
One clear concern with Suarez is injuries and durability. He never pitched more than 155 1/3 innings or reached 30 starts in four full seasons in the Phillies rotation. And now that he's reached 30 years old, it's hard to imagine that getting better in the future. So, a five-year deal with no funny business for the money certainly comes with some risk for the organization.
But for a club that just missed out on bringing back an All-Star batter, and continues to rank disappointingly low in payroll, it was about time for them to assume some risk. This move shows plainly that the Red Sox have the ability to spend more than they have in recent years, and that ownership appeared to give the go-ahead on a boom-or-bust kind of move.
And even with the remaining questions in the lineup, one still could've argued that the Red Sox' biggest need was a No. 2 starter. Suarez, and his 3.38 career ERA, should fill that need.
