PHILADELPHIA -- It was always tough to envision a scenario in which Ranger Suárez would remain in a Phillies uniform in 2026.
But that door hadn't officially closed until Wednesday, when the left-hander agreed to a five-year deal with the Red Sox, according to a source.
Suárez had not only established himself as one of the top left-handed starters in the Majors, but he was beloved by the Philadelphia fan base for his unflappable demeanor and positive attitude.
Signed by the Phillies at just 16 years old, the 30-year-old Suárez had been a part of the organization since 2012. He worked his way up through the Minors, then served in a variety of roles across his first few years in the Majors before emerging as a front-end starter over the past four seasons.
Through it all, Suárez was a part of countless key moments for the franchise -- none bigger than recording the pennant-clinching out for the Phillies in the 2022 National League Championship Series.
So while Suárez's departure wasn't exactly unexpected, it still marks a significant loss for a Phillies team that remains intent on winning the World Series.
Let's take a closer look at how it all transpired and where the Phillies go from here.
What are the Phillies losing in Suárez?
After finally settling in as a full-time starter in 2021, Suárez has had numerous stints in which he looked like a legitimate Cy Young candidate. There was the 2024 season, when he started 10-1 with a 1.75 ERA through 15 starts before stumbling a bit in a second half that included missing a month due to lower back soreness.
Then, last season, Suárez -- after missing the first month due to lower back stiffness -- once again hit the ground running. After a rocky season debut, he proceeded to go 7-2 with a 1.23 ERA over his next 11 outings.
Even with some second-half struggles, Suárez compiled a 3.25 ERA over the past five seasons. That ranks 10th in the Majors during that span, trailing only some of the biggest names in pitching: Max Fried, Zack Wheeler, Corbin Burnes, Tarik Skubal, Blake Snell, Gerrit Cole, Logan Webb, Framber Valdez and Max Scherzer.
Of course, Suárez's biggest claim to fame may be his ability to pitch under pressure. Never one to be impacted by the moment, the lefty has a 1.48 ERA across 11 postseason outings (eight starts). That ranks third all time among pitchers with at least five starts and 40 innings, trailing only Sandy Koufax (0.95) and Stephen Strasburg (1.46).
So, why wasn’t re-signing him a priority?
The Phils went into the offseason facing three major free-agent decisions in Suárez, Kyle Schwarber and J.T. Realmuto.
While in a perfect world the club would have loved to have all three back, the reality was that was never feasible from a financial standpoint. Given the makeup of the rest of the roster, the main priority was bringing back the NL MVP runner-up in Schwarber and the backbone of the entire pitching staff in Realmuto.
The Phillies believed that while their lineup could use a boost, their pitching staff could be a major strength with or without Suárez.
Speaking of ...
How will the Phillies fill that void?
If all goes well, it's not hard to make the case that the Phillies could still have the best rotation in the Majors. Of course, there are a few big "ifs" as it stands right now.
Zack Wheeler's status for Opening Day remains unclear, as does how he'll respond after undergoing thoracic outlet decompression surgery in September. Fellow veteran righty Aaron Nola is coming off an injury-riddled campaign in which he finished with a 6.01 ERA. Top prospect Andrew Painter -- for whom the Phils still have lofty expectations -- has yet to make his MLB debut.
Beyond that trio, though, is Cristopher Sánchez -- who finished as the NL Cy Young runner-up this past season -- and Jesús Luzardo -- who received some down-ballot votes of his own.
So, if Wheeler can be anything close to his usual self, Nola can bounce back and Painter can live up to expectations, that becomes a formidable starting five.
What's next for the Phillies?
As mentioned, one of the Phillies' top priorities was re-signing Realmuto -- something that still has not happened. Given some of those lingering questions about Wheeler, Nola and Painter, the Phils would love to have their starting catcher situation settled sooner than later.
And while bringing back Realmuto remains the goal, Philadelphia's meeting with free agent Bo Bichette on Monday has led to speculation that the Phils could pivot in their quest to bolster the lineup.
Given that the Phillies were never seriously in play for Suárez, his signing with the Red Sox won't directly speed up the timeline on any of these other potential moves. That said, it wouldn't be surprising to see some of these dominos start to fall in the coming days.