SEATTLE – As the Mariners wrapped up the first round of on-field batting practice Friday afternoon, Eugenio Suárez bounced around to the music, throwing in a dance move every once in a while and chatting up teammates, offering nothing but confidence-building optimism.
You wouldn’t have known he was grinding through a postseason of seldom hits, swings and misses and too many strikeouts.
Asked if he had a minute for an interview, he replied: “I can’t do it now.”
It was unusual for him to turn down the opportunity to talk.
“Don’t worry, I will talk to you after we win,” he said with a smile.
It might be an unusual comment to come from most players, who are struggling to produce in the postseason, but it was typical “Geno.”
A few hours later, Suárez turned T-Mobile Park into a screaming mess of mass hysteria and revived his team’s fading postseason hopes, smashing a game-winning grand slam in the bottom of the eighth to send the Mariners to a stunning 6-2 victory in Game 5 of the American League Championship Series.
As he climbed to the dais, he brought his two young daughters, Nicole and Melanie, with him. His wife, Genesis, stood and watched with a smile.
“I’ve been waiting for a game like this my whole career,” he said. “Today, I had it. Today, I had it in front of our crowd, in front of my family, my two daughters, my wife, and the moment is very special right now.”
He doesn’t get to have his family with him at all times during the season, so he cherishes the moments when they are in attendance. He fought back tears talking about what it means to have them see him shine.
“Today was very special not only because I hit the grand slam, but the opportunity to have my daughters and my wife watching,” he said. “They came here last night for this type of game, and I’ve been waiting for this. I just feel so grateful right now and feel so good because we’re going to Toronto with an opportunity in front of us to go to a World Series.”
Suárez actually hit two homers in the game. He gave Seattle a 1-0 lead in the second inning with a solo homer off Toronto starter Kevin Gausman.
But fans in Seattle will never forget his grand slam. After Cal Raleigh had tied the game with a solo homer off Brendon Little, the Mariners loaded the bases with two walks and a hit-by-pitch.
Facing Seranthony Dominguez, Suárez stayed on a 2-2 fastball away, sending it over the wall in right field for the grand slam.
“Just use the whole field and lock in, be ready for something on the heart of the plate, be ready for something in my strike zone,” Suárez said of his approach. “Not let that fastball beat me.”
On a day where manager Dan Wilson shuffled his lineup due to underperforming hitters, he left Suarez in the sixth spot despite his struggles.
“I think as good a player as Geno is, he’s an even better person,” Wilson said. “That’s what shines through. You can’t tell if he’s in a slump, you can’t tell what he’s going through, because he’s always picking everybody else up. He’s just a selfless player, and that’s why everybody in the clubhouse roots for Geno so hard, because he just doesn’t think about himself at all.”
Admittedly, Suárez has had his “Good Vibes Only” mantra tested this postseason. He came into the game with six hits in 39 at-bats (.162 batting average) and 14 strikeouts.
“It’s very hard,” he said. “Obviously, you want to do something. You want to do something for the team, for the fans. I just handle it in a good way. I know this game is so beautiful, and it’s going to give you an opportunity like today.”
When Suárez struggles, it can be difficult to watch. The whiffs and strikeouts can be maddening to watch. But the coaches and players who are around Suárez every day, interacting with him and watching him, know that he’s one swing away from changing everything. They marvel at the consistency of his personality.
“Geno’s a true pro,” Raleigh said. “What I mean by that is he doesn’t let results dictate who he is as a person, who he is as a teammate and how he goes about his business every day. Obviously, he hit a little rough patch there a week or two ago, but it never fazed him. He stayed with his approach and he trusted himself, and he’s awesome. He’s consistent as could be, same guy every day, great teammate, and always brings the energy.”
Suárez did that for the team during its playoff run in 2022 and the Mariners wanted to bring him back this season at the trade deadline to provide that consistency of personality and the power quotient at third base.
“I just keep my focus, keep my fire, not quit and go to every game and try to play good baseball,” he said. “I know my abilities. I can help a team, not only hitting homers, but with defense, having good at-bats, grinding in the game, and staying focused.”
Maybe it’s why he knew he would be talking postgame after a win.
“This game is beautiful, and it’s hard at the same time,” he said. “You just got to keep going, you just got to work hard, never quit, never doubt on yourself and not put too much pressure on yourself. When you try too hard is when you are not going to have good results. I’m the guy who just believes in what I can do, and I put everything on the field and I expect to have good results every time.”