Mariners Award Campaign: Eugenio Suárez

Eugenio Suárez is having an award winning season for the Mariners, but not in the way many may have thought going into the season. Let's take a look his award case in part two of our award series!

“Good Vibes Only” has been the mantra of Seattle third baseman Eugenio Suárez for several years now, and this energy shows up in a big way in baseball. A 162 game season can be extremely draining on an individual and a team, so having players who can keep it loose and fun is very important.

Manager Scott Servais wanted to keep the veteran third baseman on the pine on Tuesday evening, nearly crushing Suarez’s goal of appearing in every game. He later appeared in the content as a defensive replacement and took a questionable 3-0 hack at a pitch off the plate.

Suárez has been the embodiment of a glue guy over the past two seasons in Seattle, which is even more impressive when things aren’t going great. His “Vibes” have remained high even in a frustrating offensive season that has seen his wRC+ drop 28 points from 2022.

Geno isn’t hitting for the same type of power he did last season, and is striking out over 30 percent of the time. A high strikeout rate is perfectly fine for a player who is going to do damage at the plate, but Suárez is slugging just .383 on the season.

For most players, these struggles could cause them to feel sorry for themselves or let other areas of their game suffer, but for Eugenio Suárez this hasn’t been the case. He should be the Gold Glove award winner in the American League, no questions asked.

Ramón Urías of the Orioles took home the award in 2022 and was worth 7 OAA according to Baseball Savant. He has been poor this year according to the metric, while Suárez has been excellent.

The Venezuelan has been worth 7 OAA and ranks in the 92nd percentile in baseball defensively. He ranks second among all AL third basemen in their defensive rankings, behind Maikel Garcia of the Royals.

Geno is the bigger name of the two players, which shouldn’t matter but it always tends to prop up Gold Glove candidates. While fans have soured on Suarez as an offensive player, and rightfully so in a lot of ways, his defense needs to be appreciated.

I don’t know how many of us truly appreciate the consistency we have seen on a day in and day out basis at third base in a Mariners uniform, even dating back to Kyle Seager.

Suarez has been the model of consistency, reliability, and impact at the hot corner. He has made incredible web gems while also being as sure handed as it gets (just 7 errors). I have personally seen a lot of the work he has put in day after day with Perry Hill to be an impact defensive player, and to do this every single day deserves recognition.

Everytime they have needed a big out he has been there. Give Geno the damn Gold Glove. GOMS.