Could Phillies Reunion With Ranger Suarez Still be in the Cards?

In a slow free agent market, a return to Philadelphia could emerge as an option for Suarez

Aug 6, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Ranger Suarez (55) throws a pitch during the first inning against the Baltimore Orioles at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images | Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

The current MLB offseason is moving at a historically slow pace, with most of the top available free agents still on the board.

The position player market is still relatively untouched, with the starting pitching market even more so. The Toronto Blue Jays made an early splash by signing former San Diego Padres starter Dylan Cease to a 7-year, $210 million mega deal, but very few important dominoes have fallen since then.

Spring Training games are set to commence in just over 6 weeks, and while it isn't a rarity for offseason proceedings to bleed into MLB's month-long ramp-up period, teams and players frequently attempt to iron out deals beforehand, if possible.

Along with that, the longer free agents remain unable to acquire the long-term contracts that they initially desired, the more willing they tend to be to sign shorter-term deals with a higher Average Annual Value. It's been reported all offseason that Philadelphia Phillies' veteran southpaw Ranger Suarez is seemingly destined to join a new team moving forward, but the unpredictability of free agency makes nothing a guarantee.

How it Would Work

It's unlikely that, with their current payroll, the Phillies' front office would be willing to offer Suarez a long-term deal with a high AAV.

The rotation, filled with All-Stars and Cy Young candidates, as well as top prospects on the way, is far from the team's biggest area to improve. However, entering a season with an abundance of reliable arms is never a situation that teams will pass up on if given the opportunity. Suarez still reportedly has a healthy amount of suitors interested in acquiring his services, including the division rival New York Mets, who ESPN national reporter Buster Olney deemed an "inevitable" landing spot for either Suarez or fellow top starter Framber Valdez.

ESPN's Buster Olney says it seems "inevitable" that the Mets will sign one of Framber Valdez or Ranger Suarez as they continue to explore the starting pitching market pic.twitter.com/g6non1QUjY

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) January 6, 2026

As the offseason continues to drag on, teams and players/agents will soon become much more desperate to get deals to the finish line. Suarez has made it clear how much he enjoyed pitching in Philadelphia, and it's not hard to believe that he might be open to coming back to the team that he entered the MLB and carved out a career with.

Top prospect Andrew Painter is expected by many to be a large part of the Phillies' rotation plans in 2026, especially as Ace Zack Wheeler recovers from injury. With little MLB rotation depth behind their main starters, and the possibility that they don't want to rush Painter's development as he works back from his UCL surgery, the front office could ramp up efforts to bring back Suarez to round out what is among the top rotations in baseball.

Returning to Philadelphia is still far from the top of the list in terms of the most likely outcomes, but creative roster-building could result in the fan favorite coming back to the Phillies, at least in the short term.