José Ramírez: The little boy who triumphed!
When José Ramírez was not wanted or used as a bench player as a child, his father José Báez gave words of encouragement he needed.
"Do not worry, you're going to be a baseball player," said Báez, who played at the amateur level, so he would not lower his head or enthusiasm.
"If you want to take him, he does not have a chance here. He is very short, "the coaches of a program in Villa Majega, Baní, the neighborhood where the 5'8-tall player was born and raised, warned.
Things began to change slightly when Enrique Soto welcomed Ramirez into the program he has at the Cucurucho de Peravia Stadium saying that he would be better than Erick Aybar. The coaches and scouts laughed at him.
"They rejected me a lot as a kid. They were saying things that I did not bring to mind. What they were saying came in one ear and came out in the other, "says the now star second base player of the Cleveland Indians .
The performances at that time, 2008 and 2009, starred shortstops Rafael Furcal and especially José Reyes and Miguel Tejada, as well as outfielder Luis Polonia, were not large players but were predominate at these times, served as motivation to keep trying to crystallize his dream of being a professional baseball player.
"I used to say 'but if they can, why can not I?' and forced me to work harder, "reveals Ramirez "Enriquito", meaning diminutive which is what his closest friends call him.
This is how, on a day in 2009, in a "try out" held at the complex of the Cleveland Indians, in Baseball City, that Ramón Peña, head of scouts for Latin America for that organization, had an eye on him and said: "(you are signed)".
Peña, responsible for the signings of 56 players who came to the big leagues, had told his assistant Felix Nivar that Soto did not know Ramírez was the best prospect in the group he was scouting that day.
Then, he took Soto behind the outfield to get him away from other scouts who were also looking for talent.
Peña asked Soto about other players who he might want and knew he might sign.
José Ramírez defeated the scouts' scorn
Enrique Soto was promoting shortstop Martín Teilón Peguero and the Colombian catcher Jorge Alfaro. For the first, he asked for three million dollars and a million and a half for the last one.
"Soto talked to me about Siore, a catcher, but in my mind there was a second baseman (Ramírez)," Peña says.
Soto set Ramirez's price at 300,000, but as there was not much interest in him, Peña said "but you're crazy".
Soto began descending the scale and before all was said and done the deal ended up with an offering of 50 thousand.
"Deal done," exclaimed Ramón. "I gave him my hand at once."
At that time the Minnesota scout, Fred Guerrero, also approached with the intention of signing him, but it was too late.
"C ...! It's that you are very slow, and Ramón Peña has just signed him! ", said Soto. Guerrero was annoyed because he was aware that he could have done a better deal than the one that got done by Peña who was know for signing players for low bonuses that later arrived and stood out in the Major Leagues.
The veteran scout was struck by what a good batter Ramírez was on either side of the plate and the great command he had of the basics of the game.
"He played ball like a veteran," said Peña. Last season Ramírez had a record of .318-29-83 and 56 doubles that lead the majors and was finalist for the Golden Glove awards and third in the race for the Most Valuable Player.
"He knew how to play baseball but it was difficult for him", said Peña of José Ramírez, the regular middleman of the Indians, while answering questions at the Sports Café. He signed as a 17-year-old boy who played like this ", which led scouts to doubt his age.
"I signed José Lima and Ruddy Pemberton for two thousand dollars; Juan Encarnación for three thousand; Danny Bautista and Fernando Rodney for four thousand; Francisco Cordero for six thousand, and Ramón Santiago for seven thousand, among many players that I have signed but the bonus does not make the player.", highlights Peña.
He regrets Hector Caro ("that he was expensive") he signed for 1.1 million.
"Caro lasted three years in the Summer League and did not hit a home run even though he was 6'3 and weighed 235 pounds," Peña recalls with a smile.
His performance earned him $ 300,000 in bonuses.
Ramirez received 150 thousand dollars for his third place finish for MVP of the American League.
In the Major Leagues, not only doesthe player live on his salary, but also the performance bonuses that are included in the negotiations. of contracts between teams and agents.
And José Ramírez did very well after his outstanding participation with the Cleveland Indians last season in the Major Leagues. This was revealed in a courtesy visit to the Sports section of LISTÍN DIARIO.
By coming in third place in the race for the Most Valuable Player, the native of Bani was "bagged" a bonus worth 150 thousand dollars.
The prize ended up in the hands of the Venezuelan Jose Altuve, of the champion Houston Astros, while the second place went to Aaron Judge, of the New York Yankees.
With a silver bat as defender of third base, the Dominican Ramírez won an extra cash prize of $ 50,000.
In 152 regular-season games, the switch hitter led the major leagues with 56 doubles, batting .318 with a .957 OPS, 29 homers, 83 RBIs and 107 runs scored.
For his selection to join the American League team for the All-Star Game, the short-statured player (5-9), but big-hearted had an over-prize of also $ 100,000, the same amount for which he was signed by Ramón Peña in the year 2009.
The total, in bonuses he accumulated was 300 thousand dollars, plus extra money he will receive for participating in the postseason. Cleveland was only present in a playoff series, which they lost in 5 games against the Yankees.
His 91 extra-base hits were the second highest number in history for a switch hitter. He became just the 19th. A player who hits at least 56 doubles in a campaign. His OPS is the highest in a station for a player who has made at least 60 appearances in both the second and third bases.
At the end of the season, he was also included as a designated hitter in the Major League All-Stars team selected by the Baseball America publication and was one of the three finalists for the Gold Glove as third baseman.
Ramírez will work his physique again in the US
One week after finishing the season, not in the way he would have liked, José Ramírez began his preparation for the 2018 season.
The good results that the small third baseman of the Cleveland Indians has just won, has confirmed that he must physically arrive as best he can to the training camps to face another eight months of playing baseball.
Last year he was for the first time at a training center in Sarasota, Florida, and the results are in full view.
In 2016, as a utility player, Ramírez earned a regular position and responded to the trust placed in him by Terry Francona playing good defense and batting .312, with 11 homers, 46 doubles and 76 RBIs.
Improvement
This year, in the same number of games, his numbers improved notably. He had a .318 average, home runs almost tripled (29), doubles increased from 46 to 56, triples from three to six and those batted in from 76 to 83.
"They prepare you well physically and help you with the diet", emphasizes Ramirez at the Sports Café of LISTÍN DIARIO, where he was accompanied by the scouts who signed him (Ramón Peña and Félix Nivar), his brother José David, a shortstop of 15-years old who predicts that he will be a star, as well as his cousin Luis Báez, his childhood friend Robeto Mañán González and Wilson Amador, a pitcher who played at the Class A level this year with the Astros' organization in Houston.
Ramirez indicated that he is already working with the weights in his native Baní, but that at the beginning of January he will travel to Sarasota because there he has less distractions and focuses better on that important aspect.
His decision to prioritize physical work will see him absent for the second consecutive campaign with the Toros del Este, a team that more than ever needs his service. The Bulls occupy the basement with a record of 9-16 (does not include yesterday's game against Leones Escogido).
He said that for that reason he will not attend and wear the Romana uniform, with which he has not played since the 2015-2016 season, when he averaged just .300 in 13 games.
Awarded third base, but feels more comfortable at second
José Ramírez won the silver bat as a third baseman in the American League. He was a finalist for the Golden Glove, the defensive prize for the best, at third base. But that was not even his best base.
"My natural position is the second base", says Ramírez during his visit to the Sports section of LISTÍN DIARIO together with the scout Ramón Peña, who was in charge of his signature in 2009.
Ramírez started the season as a third baseman, but when Jason Kipnis suffered a hamstring injury, the Indians placed him on the disabled list for 10 days and switched to the Dominican to cover second base for the rest of the season.
He was selected by the fans' vote as the starter at third base for the All-Star Game.
In 88 games and 736.2 innings as a defender of third base, he had a fielding percentage of .972 with 146 assists, six errors and 23 double plays in 231 opportunities.
At second base he saw action in 71 games and 577.1 innings in which he compiled a .980 fielding with 170 assists, six errors and 55 double plays for 294 chances.
He stressed that he has a great relationship on the field with the Puerto Rican shortstop Francisco Lindor, whom he defined as an excellent defender and with whom he feels comfortable for having made a combination of short and second in the minor leagues.
"I feel very satisfied with the work I do on the defensive side," added Ramírez, who attributed his good performance to the accumulated experience and good preparation in the offseason.
He was a candidate to win the Gold Glove at third base, but he did not fail to recognize the difficulty due to the fact that third base is a power position.
