Ranger Suárez's introduction to Red Sox will have Phillies fans in their feels

It was a bittersweet Wednesday for Philadelphia Phillies fans as they watched one of the club's best homegrown talents in recent years, Ranger Suárez, officially become a member of the Boston Red Sox.

This offseason's free agency was one of the most highly anticipated for Phillies fans. Several of the favorites, Kyle Schwarber, J.T. Realmuto, and Suárez, headed into free agency. While many were vocal about how desperately the team needed to re-sign their bats, no one was advocating for the team's biggest secret weapon: Suárez.

Primarily thanks to payroll constraints, Suárez was the odd man out. Now the pitching staff feels relatively barren without Suárez's swagger and passion for his "childhood club," as he called Philadelphia.

Phillies fans will miss Ranger Suárez as he joins his new Red Sox team in Boston

Unfortunately for the Phillies, especially after being loosely linked to Suárez this offseason, they will be without the 30-year-old southpaw. He signed a five-year, $130 million contract with the Red Sox. As of Jan. 21, that contract has become official as Suárez made his first appearance at Fenway Park as a member of the Red Sox.

Suárez was introduced to Red Sox fans on Wednesday. In a well-attended introductory press conference that included principal owner John Henry and chief baseball officer Craig Breslow, Suárez explained one of the reasons he chose Boston.

"I'm just really excited to be here with this team, the mix of young players with veteran players, I'm just really excited to be here with this team," Suárez said through a translator. "Since I was a little kid, and we would watch baseball on TV, what would be on was Red Sox-Yankees, and you know everyone was going for the Yankees, and I asked, 'Why is no one going for Boston?' And that's when the interest started."

It clearly didn't take long for the press and fans alike to start gravitating towards Suárez. He also mentioned one of his idols, Pedro Martínez, who had somewhat of a reverse trajectory as Suárez. Martínez, who most notably played for Boston, ended his career in Philadelphia as a member of their franchise-defining run in 2009.

He's certainly embracing his new home and acclimating himself to his new city just as much as he did in Philadelphia. Phillies fans are more than aware of how effective Suárez is without high velocity, and he explained that to his new fans.

"If you have really good command of and are able to mix them well, you don't really need 100 [mph] and that what I do ... that's what's given me success," Suarez said.

Breslow also told fans what they can expect from Suárez.

"Bringing in a player with the talent and accomplishments of Ranger positions us, we believe to [compete for a World Series]," Breslow said. "Ranger's been an excellent starting pitcher in a very tough division for a really long time, was an All-Star two years ago, was even better last year.

"What really stands out is the body of work in the postseason. When his team's needed him the most he was at his best, and we look forward to Ranger continuing to build that postseason resume over the next five years."

Breslow has made some abysmal moves in his time in Boston (like trading away a cornerstone player in Rafael Devers, essentially for one season of Alex Bregman), but there's no denying the Red Sox already had one of the best starting rotations in the league before adding Suárez. He signed Garrett Crochet to a six-year, $170 million extension in the midst of their Wild Card push last year and then added veteran Sonny Gray in a trade earlier this offseason.

"It can be difficult at times to fully appreciate the impact of having dominant starting pitching," Breslow said. "But going into a game feeling like we can just play our game offensively and on the bases because our pitching is going to keep us in the game is such a huge advantage for the team. I think no matter who we’re playing, on any given day, we’re going to feel like we’ve got a chance to win."

There's no doubt in this writer's mind that Red Sox Nation will treat Suárez with the utmost respect, especially if the Red Sox can find their way back to the postseason, in which Suárez thrives. Why? Because, much like the Philadelphia fandom, New Englanders ride for their players, especially when they play with the same heart Suárez has shown throughout his tenure with the Phillies.