CINCINNATI — A pitcher who grew up in and maintained his ties to Cincinnati is finally going to pitch for his hometown team. A source told MLB.com on Thursday that the Reds and veteran lefty reliever Brent Suter agreed to terms on a one-year contract that is worth a guaranteed $3 million.
The deal, which has not been formally announced by the club, will pay Suter $2.5 million in 2024 and includes a $3.5 million club option for the ’25 season with a $500,000 buyout. The elated 34-year-old confirmed he was coming to the Reds in an interview with MLB.com.
“We are super excited, it’s just a dream come true,” Suter said. “The Reds were my favorite team of any sport, anything for years and years growing up. This is absolutely surreal, so cool.”
Suter is 40-22 with a 3.49 ERA in 253 career games for the Brewers (2016-22) and Rockies (’23). He went to Archbishop Moeller High School in Cincinnati and lives in the city during the offseason.
“This is home base,” he said.
Last season for Colorado, Suter had a 3.38 ERA in 57 appearances and 69 1/3 innings.
It turns out that there was room for another free agent and that a deal had been in the works for a while.
“They were one of the first teams to reach out and were pretty consistent in calling us,” Suter said. “We kind of knew they were interested. We didn’t know how interested. Here recently, they made some moves and it came together really quick. It was super exciting. It’s been a weird and slow market, especially for relievers this year. There were a lot of calls that were touching base. Here recently, it got really exciting.”
Adding Suter bolsters a Cincinnati bullpen that already has two lefties in Sam Moll and Alex Young.
Suter gives the Reds another workhorse type of reliever. He had 24 multi-inning appearances last season, he’s worked frequently in high-leverage situations and he has postseason experience. Cincinnati was second in the National League last season in bullpen innings.
“That’s one of the unique things about me. I can go multiples a lot,” Suter said. “I can go back to back or three days in a row if you need me. I’m assuming that’s what I’m going to do. I haven’t officially talked to them about that yet.”
Suter has relationships with several members of the Reds. He and manager David Bell are both Moeller graduates. Pitching coach Derek Johnson and catcher Luke Maile both worked with Suter when they were with the Brewers. Suter has also spent time with reliever Lucas Sims in local community events for the Miracle League.
Pitching at home aside, Suter was also motivated to join the Reds for another chance to win and be with a contender.
“It’s a winning culture, an amazing energy, a really strong group of young core players who are super exciting to watch, and super good,” Suter said. “When we came and played the Reds this past summer with the Rockies, they were in the middle of that 12-game winning streak [in June]. It was unbelievably electric. You could see the city falling in love with the team. It was really cool. To be able to be a part of that, it’s such a gift. It’s such a great opportunity. Me and my family are so excited.”
Reds agree with five players to avoid arbitration
It was a busy day for the Reds’ baseball operations department on Thursday as the club reached deals on one-year contracts that avoided arbitration with five of their six players who were eligible.
Sims will earn $2.850 million in 2024, catcher Tyler Stephenson will get $2.525 million, outfielder Jake Fraley will earn $2.150 million, Young is set to receive $1.16 million and reliever Tejay Antone agreed to make $830,000.
Only second baseman Jonathan India did not come to an agreement on a contract before the 1 p.m. ET deadline for arbitration-eligible players to avoid a potential hearing next month. The Reds offered $3.2 million in arbitration while India filed at $4 million.
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