Only ‘good vibes’ for Eugenio Suarez in former Mariner’s return to Seattle

Eugenio Suarez is back at T-Mobile Park this weekend, and he’s brought his signature vibes with him.

To hear him tell it, though, the Arizona Diamondbacks’ new third baseman has mostly retired the popular “Good Vibes Only” mantra he introduced to Seattle during the Mariners’ playoff chase in 2022.

“I’m leaving all that here in Seattle,” Suarez said in the visitors’ dugout Friday afternoon. “I still love the boys, I still miss them, but I leave it here.”

The Mariners traded Suarez, 32, in November in their first cost-cutting move of the offseason, acquiring backup catcher Seby Zavala and minor-leaguer reliever Carlos Vargas in return.

Suarez said he was emotional after learning of the trade from Mariners president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto, and he expected to be emotional again Friday night before his first at-bat.

The Mariners played a nice tribute to Suarez on the videoboard before the start of the top of the second inning. The crowd followed with a standing ovation for him, and Suarez turned around from the on-deck circle, took off his helmet and thanked the crowd.

Suarez endeared himself to local fans even in his short tenure with the Mariners.

“The Seattle fans is one of the best that I have all my career, and the way they love the game, the way they support the team is unbelievable,” he said.

Suarez said he still keeps tabs on his old team. He described Luis Castillo as one of his closest friends in the game, and he’s glad he won’t have to face the Mariners’ ace this weekend.

“I still love them,” Suarez said, “but it’s a business, and I will do my best to win this series.”

Suarez played in all 162 games for the Mariners last season, and he combined to hit 53 home runs with a .234/.327/.423 (. 751 OPS) slash line in his two seasons in Seattle.

Suarez was back at third base and hitting fifth in the D-backs’ lineup for the series opener Friday night.

He has two homers with a .679 OPS in his first 25 games with Arizona this season.

Mariners manager Scott Servais called Suarez “one my all-time favorite” players to coach.

“He’s a special dude,” Servais said. “He meant so much to our entire group. … He just has a way about him. He’s so easy to root for, especially when you get to know the personality and what all goes into making Geno Geno. A lot of great memories here.”

Woo, Brash set for rehab outings in Tacoma

Bryan Woo is scheduled to make his second rehab start for Triple-A Tacoma on Saturday at Cheney Stadium, and reliever Matt Brash said he expects to make his first rehab appearance in Tacoma this weekend, too.

Both pitchers were with the Mariners during pregame workouts Friday afternoon at T-Mobile Park. They had been rehabbing together at the Mariners’ complex in Arizona.

Woo was perfect in his first rehab start for the Rainiers on Sunday in Las Vegas, throwing three shutout innings with no hits and no walks on 35 pitches.

Woo is scheduled to extend his pitch count to 50-60 on Saturday.

He is scheduled to have at least one more rehab start after Saturday, and the Mariners would like to build him up to at least 80 pitches before they consider activating him off the injured list.

The team has no plans to employ a six-man rotation.

Brash will likely need several rehab outings in Tacoma before he can be activated.

“Matt has built himself to the point with velocity and (pitch) shapes where he’s throwing at 100%,” general manager Justin Hollander said Friday. “He’s here basically to be examined to see if he’s bouncing back in a way that everybody’s comfortable with.”

No timeline for Crawford; Canzone making progress

J.P. Crawford, placed on the IL on Thursday with an oblique strain, will likely be out for at least several weeks, but Hollander did not have a specific timeline for the shortstop’s return.

“We’ll know more in the next week or so what that looks like,” Hollander said.

Dominic Canzone (shoulder strain), meanwhile, has started running and throwing during his rehab in Arizona.

“We hope [Canzone] can begin a hitting progression next week, which is great,” Hollander said. “That probably still leaves him a couple weeks out — maybe two or three weeks out from full baseball activities. He’s progressing well and we’re happy with where he’s at.”

Notes

• Reliever Gregory Santos (lat strain) is “still building volume and distance” with his throwing program, Hollander said. He’s thrown up to 120 feet this week. Santos is not eligible to be activated from the 60-day IL until May 24.

• Reliever Eduard Bazardo (rotator cuff strain) threw one inning in Tacoma on Tuesday in his first rehab appearance, and he’ll continue to build up strength there for at least another two weeks.

• One of the Mariners’ top prospects, shortstop Colt Emerson (oblique), is expected to be activated from the minor-league injured list this weekend for Class Low-A Modesto. An injury to another top prospect, Jonny Farmelo (shoulder), is not considered serious, Hollander said.