It’s been a very quiet offseason for the Red Sox as far as free agent signings are concerned. That changed on January 14, as Boston reportedly signed former Phillie Ranger Suarez to a five-year deal. It’s a move that adds yet another big piece to their 2026 rotation.
A Look at Suarez
Once a reliever in the Phillies’ bullpen, Ranger Suarez — an under-the-radar pitcher in the team’s Minor League system for years — got his first real break in an MLB rotation back in 2021. Suarez pitched well, which netted him a full-time role as a starter. And he became a key piece of the Phillies’ rotation for the last four seasons.
The 30-year-old posted a sub-4.00 ERA in three of his last four seasons with the Phillies. He ranked above the 50th percentile in Chase% and Barrel% over the last three seasons, which, in turn, also helped him limit the home run ball in Citizens Bank Ballpark.
Suarez’s .298 wOBA ranked 41st among starters who threw at least 100 innings last year.
He’s a heavy groundball pitcher. In two of the last four campaigns, Suarez had a GB% above 50%. And on top of that, Suarez can also induce a fair amount of swings and misses. He won’t blow anyone away, as Suarez routinely sits in the 90-91 MPH range. That holds true for his four-seamer and sinker.
However, he gets about a 10 MPH separation on his changeup and can also stymie hitters with the curveball.
Suarez had 202 called strikes on the curveball, the 25th-most in the Majors over the last three years. Keep in mind that Suarez doesn’t throw that curveball too much; roughly 15-20% of the time between 2023 and 2025.
Aside from those pitchers, Suarez will also regularly use a cutter, primarily against right-handed hitters, plus a sporadically-used slider.
Opposing left-handed and right-handed hitters had a sub-.700 OPS against him in 2025.
Per multiple reports, including MLB.com, the Red Sox will sign Ranger Suarez to a five-year deal worth $130MM.
Analysis
After the Red Sox lost out on Alex Bregman, the Red Sox used some of that money to pick up Suarez, an effective left-handed pitcher who is just that. Not a hard thrower, but one who will offer plenty of different looks. Throughout his MLB career, he’s been successful in limiting damage every year.
The Red Sox have a win-now group, and Suarez has been one of the game’s postseason pitchers over the last four years. He netted the Phillies their lone playoff win of 2025. Two years ago, Suarez struck out 19 over 18.2 IP, walked two, and allowed just one home run during the 2023 playoffs.
Boston’s rotation has gotten deeper since the winter began. Suarez becomes the third notable pitcher to join the Red Sox, alongside Johan Oviedo and Sonny Gray. Not to mention, the Sox still have Garrett Crochet, Brayan Bello, as well as rookies Payton Tolle and Connelly Early.
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