Philadelphia Phillies starting pitcher Ranger Suárez will probably not receive a contract extension. Suárez is entering his last season of team control making $8.8 million. Furthermore, Suárez is one of three players that have been with the team for a few years, entering the last year of their contract. Kyle Schwarber and J.T. Realmuto are also in line to be free agents after the 2025 season. Extensions for Schwarber and Realmuto are a higher priority because of positional considerations. Realmuto is the most likely to get an extension between him, Suárez, and Schwarber. The Phillies lack depth at the catching position making it important to extend Realmuto keeping him with the team for a few more years before Eduardo Tait is ready.
In seven seasons with the Phillies, Suárez has a 41-29 record, a 3.42 ERA, and one All-Star appearance in 2024. Suárez has exclusively been a starting pitcher for the last three seasons after being in a hybrid role his first four seasons. Last season, in 27 starts, Suárez had a 12-8 record with a 3.46 ERA and a career-high 145 strikeouts. Suárez recorded a 117 ERA+ and a 3.37 FIP in 2024. For his career, Suárez has a 3.63 FIP and a 121 ERA+. In 10 postseason outings, Suárez has a 3-1 record with a 1.43 ERA along with 40 strikeouts. Suárez has a career 20.7% cWPA in the postseason. In addition, Suárez has a 2.79 FIP and a 1.035 WHIP in the postseason, with a 3.33 strikeout-to-walk rate.
Highly Ranked Pitching Prospect Expected To Reach Majors During 2025 Season
Top prospect Andrew Painter is going to pitch in the majors if everything goes smoothly with their workload management plan for him. Painter arriving in the majors later this season could lead to Suárez moving to the bullpen. Depending on exactly when Painter gets called up, a six-man rotation is also a possibility. Zack Wheeler has expressed displeasure with a six-man rotation on multiple occasions. Phillies manager Rob Thomson has still used a six-man rotation on a few occasions despite how Wheeler feels about it. However, this is still some ways off, and things could easily change between now and then. Those decisions are probably going to be made at the time Painter is ready to come up to the major leagues later this year.
Offseason Move Changing The Equation
The Phillies trade for Jesús Luzardo decreased the chances for a new deal for Suárez. Luzardo is under team control through the 2026 season and is a left-handed pitcher like Suárez is. Matt Gelb of The Athletic reported at one point in the offseason that the Phillies were having trade conversations regarding Suárez. With Painter expected to arrive in the summer, it is possible that Suárez will get traded by the deadline. What happens at that point remains to be seen. Suárez might not end up getting trade when Painter gets called up to preserve starting pitching depth. Additionally, Suárez is a dominant postseason pitcher and has started and closed out games during his career. Suárez has four regular-season saves and one postseason save.
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