Cleveland Guardians: José Ramírez is back, baby

Cleveland Guardians third baseman José Ramírez has been slumping recently – at least by his standards – but it appears he’s heating up again at the exact right time.

If the Cleveland Guardians want to have any hope of staying in the postseason discussion – no matter what they do at the trade deadline – they’re going to need third baseman José Ramírez to re-capture some of that early-season MVP magic.

Lucky for them, he appears to be doing just that, as he single-handedly beat the Tampa Bay Rays Friday night, racking up three RBIs in Cleveland’s 4-1 victory that pulled them ever closer in both the Central division and AL Wild Card races.

Ramírez has been dealing with a sore thumb since June, though it’s unclear just how much that might be affecting him at the plate. Still, it’s hard not to see the drop in his usual production correlating with the thumb injury. But if he’s starting to come back around again, it’s happening at the perfect time.

Since June 15 – a ten-game stretch – Ramírez is hitting .308/.341/.667 with four home runs (including homers now in consecutive games), two doubles, and 14 RBIs. Even as many young players on the roster continue to step up around him, the Guardians certainly need that delicious 1.008 OPS over the last couple weeks. It doesn’t need to be said that Ramírez is a true difference-maker, but nights like Friday make it abundantly clear.

And now, with Ramírez starting to get hot to close out July, right as the Guardians endure another tough stretch against playoff-caliber opponents, the youngest team in baseball continues to make the 2022 season so utterly compelling.

Looking for a trade deadline primer? Check out our latest episode of The California Penal League podcast, which you can find on Apple, Spotify, and anywhere else you listen to podcasts.