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Detroit Tigers Dropped the Ball on the Eugenio Suarez Trade

By Tyler Kotila

PHOENIX, ARIZONA - SEPTEMBER 15: Eugenio Suarez #7 of the Cincinnati Reds hits a solo home run off of Zac Gallen #59 of the Arizona Diamondbacks during the sixth inning at Chase Field on September 15, 2019 in Phoenix, Arizona. It was the second home run of the game for Suarez. (Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images)
PHOENIX, ARIZONA - SEPTEMBER 15: Eugenio Suarez #7 of the Cincinnati Reds hits a solo home run off of Zac Gallen #59 of the Arizona Diamondbacks during the sixth inning at Chase Field on September 15, 2019 in Phoenix, Arizona. It was the second home run of the game for Suarez. (Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images) /
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Back in 2015, the Detroit Tigers acquired Alfredo “The Big Pasta” Simon from the Cincinnati Reds in exchange for Jonathon Crawford and Eugenio Suarez. This trade did not bode well for the Tigers, but hindsight is always 20/20.

In 2015, the Detroit Tigers finally had broken down, spiraling into fifth place in the American League Central division. They acquired Alfredo Simon to round out the rotation, with an infield full, keeping Eugenio Suarez around was highly unlikely for the Tigers either way. Moving him was likely, but the point is… the Tigers have lost this trade.

In the 2015 season, the Detroit Tigers got thirty-one starts out of Simon who produced a 13-12 record with a 5.05 ERA and 1.44 WHIP. Simon was a National League All-Star in 2014, but 2015 was not kind to Simon, and that is all the Tigers received from him. In the fall of 2015, Simon was granted his free agency in which he returned to the Reds organization.

After returning to the Reds, he would only pitch one more season with horrific numbers. He has not pitched in another game in the big league since 2016. So mainly the Tigers got him at the tail end of his MLB career, where he produced below-average numbers.

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On the other side of the trade, Suarez played in ninety-seven games for the Reds who would finish in the last place in the National League Central division. In 2015, Suarez slashed .280/.315/.446 with 13 home runs and 48 RBI’s for the Reds. Suarez took some time to develop, but in 2018 Suarez quietly earned an All-Star appearance for the Reds.

In 2019, the storylines of baseball have all been surrounding players like Christian Yelich, Mike Trout, Cody Bellinger, Pete Alonso, and plenty of other big names. Suarez is quietly having a phenomenal season in the power category, mashing 47 home runs with 101 RBI for the Reds. Besides the home runs, he’s slashing .271/.353/.577 quietly having a remarkable season offensively for the Reds.

There are plenty of factors that can go into a player breaking out and developing. Staying with Detroit, he may not get as much time to grow at the major league level since the Tigers had Nicholas Castellanos at third base during this time. There’s no promise that Suarez would be a near 50 home run hitter on the Tigers today.

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However, looking strictly at the value that Simon gave the Tigers versus the value Suarez gave and is still giving the Reds, this trade was disastrous for the Detroit Tigers. Hindsight is 20/20, and in this case, it’s a trade the Tigers probably wish they could get a re-do on.

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