With Eugenio Suarez officially gone, the Mariners will count on young players to step up
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Following the news that their former third baseman has sailed off to the Cincinnati Reds, there's a hole in the field and the lineup. And it's a pretty big vacancy to fill. The two-time All-Star hit 49 home runs last season, albeit most of them (36) before the Mariners acquired him from the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Seattle has already been preparing for this moment. After Suarez stalled so long in signing, the club had already assumed that he wouldn't be returning in 2026. Now, his spot opens up for potential Mariners like Colt Emerson and second-year player Ben Williamson. And the M's are just fine going with those hot corner hopefuls, rather than just putting a Band-Aid on the problem.
CLICK FOR MORE: Seattle loses free agent third baseman Eugenio Suarez to the Cincinnati Reds
“What we don't want to do is sign somebody who's older but not better,” Mariners general manager Justin Hollander said. “And we do believe in our young players. We believe in our veteran players, too. There are likely going to be avenues for us to continue to get better -- whether it's over the next week or over the next six months -- that we'll explore. But we do want to give our guys runway to figure out things in the big leagues.”
Emerson could start at second, with Williamson at third
At the same time the third base job is available, so is the keystone. The 2025 second baseman Jorge Polanco left via free agency for the Big Apple, signing a two-year contract with New York. This mean that BOTH promising prospects could play everyday. Emerson, a natural shortstop, could slide into the second sacker's slot. Meanwhile, defensive standout could man third.
“That’s probably the highest upside version of the Mariners in the short and long term, is developing homegrown, star-level players and then ideally signing them and keeping them for a long time,” Hollander stated. “But that doesn’t mean you want to forsake what you think are clear upgrades."
"I don’t want to get older for the sake of getting older. Like I said, if we can get better, I think we’re open-minded.”
