The Indians announced Wednesday that they’ve claimed outfielder Harold Ramirez off waivers from the Marlins. Right-hander Jordan Humphreys was designated for assignment to open a spot on the 40-man roster.
The 26-year-old Ramirez debuted at the MLB level with the Marlins in May 2019 and posted a superb .368/.419/.474 batting line over his first month of action before his bat cooled off. Ramirez struggled through June and July that year before rebounding, to an extent, in the final two months of the year. Overall, his .276/.312/.416 batting line through 446 plate appearances as a rookie looked to position him well for a lengthier audition in 2020.
That didn’t happen, however, as Ramirez was one of the 20 members of the Marlins organization to test positive for Covid-19 during the team’s outbreak. When he returned from that diagnosis, he sustained a hamstring injury almost immediately and didn’t return from there on. All told, he played in just three games last summer.
Ramirez adds to what has been a consistently jumbled outfield mix for Cleveland over the past few seasons. The Indians brought in former division rival Eddie Rosario on a one-year deal to play left field, and they’ll likely give Oscar Mercado a chance to rebound in center field. Beyond that, playing time ought to be largely up for grabs, and Ramirez should be squarely in the mix, alongside Josh Naylor, Jordan Luplow, Jake Bauers, Bradley Zimmer and Daniel Johnson.
All of those players in that hodgepodge, Ramirez included, have at least one minor league option remaining, so there won’t be any cases of a player winning out solely to avoid a DFA. That should set the stage for a legitimate competition during camp, though Ramirez and Luplow are the only two right-handed bats in the bunch, which could give them an advantage.
Humphreys, 24, has yet to make his big league debut but had a big 2017 season across two Class-A levels in the Mets organization before requiring Tommy John surgery. He allowed just two runs in 13 innings of Rookie ball in 2019 as he rehabbed from that surgery and likely would’ve been ticketed for a Double-A assignment in 2020 had their been a minor league season.
The Mets traded Humphreys to the Giants in exchange for Billy Hamilton, however, and Cleveland eventually picked Humphreys up off waivers. Coincidentally, both Humphreys and Hamilton are with the Indians organization at the moment, as Hamilton inked a minor league deal earlier in the winter.
Cleveland will have a week to trade Humphreys or attempt to pass him through outright waivers. If they can indeed sneak him through waivers, he’d remain in camp as a non-roster invitee and give the club an interesting depth piece. In 169 2/3 professional innings, Humphreys has a 2.60 ERA with an above-average 26.1 percent strikeout rate and a brilliant 4.4 percent walk rate.
Wow! Miami giving up on him so quickly! Must be some negative $#it that goes along with him.
Pittsburgh gave up on him. He was thrown in with McGuire to unload Lirano’s contract to Toronto. Toronto gave up on him quickly too. They let him walk after 2 seasons too.
So here is Harold’s profile:
– Good hitter, but doesn’t take many BBs.
– Very good baserunner, can swipe 10/15 bags.
– Fringy LF range profile with slightly below average defensive metrics for the position. Can play RF and CF occasionally.
– Weak arm
– Lots of hard-contact ground balls and line drives.
As of today, he is a 270/320/450ish ~15HRs and 20 doubles if you give him 400 ABs.
Can improve a lot if he corrects his launch angle.
That is a very generous slash line for a guy who has yet to show power at any level. His highest ISO in the minors is .151. That is not gunna equate to a .450 slug. If it did, he wouldn’t be getting DFAd. A .260/.310/.400 line is more of what he would be projected. I agree, if he improves his launch angle he could start hitting for more power, but changing your launch angle is very difficult to do without sacrificing contact. If he gets to a .450 slug it may drop his OBP to the .280-.290 range. Hope the Indians can improve him, but they couldn’t do it with Aguilar or Diaz. Both guys blossomed by changing their launch angle after they left Cleveland.
Hit .264/.304/.438/.742 (a 174 iso) in 2nd half of 2019, including very consistent lines in roughly 100 PA in both Aug (.281/.310/.448/.758) and Sept
(.286/.333/.440/.774)
That was after the June-July slump, and looks as though it may represent his adjusting to pitchers
Not saying that is what should expect, but an iso around, to even over, 150 doesn’t look that unrealistic
@Steve Nebraska :
Since he is 26 and his career slashline is 274/311/411-11HRs-20 2Bs in 457 PAs, I would say he can show progression instead of regression (like your stats present), also supported by the comment from @darkstar61. He might not ever hit 25 HRs, but with a bit of luck and a stadium change (Miami to Cleveland), 20 round-trippers are not that long shot.
Just give the guy consistent ABs and you’ll see… Not at all like Brinson, who only rakes in Spring Training.
“Gunna” has never been a word.
@habeto
I just wanted to say thanks for taking the time to post that outlook on Harold Ramirez. I appreciate the effort bud.
You’re welcome! I felt it was my duty since he is a fellow Colombian. Now he has the chance to play alongside ‘paisano’ Oscar Mercado.
I’m betting for a Ramírez-Mercado-Zimmer Cleveland outfield for next season.
Habeto, Eddie Rosario will be one of the Indians outfielders in 2021. Josh Naylor will also be in the outfield unless he ends up the starter at 1B which is entirely possible. We will see what Harold Ramirez can do. It is a no harm no foul move for the Indians. Just think, if he makes the Indians they will have two Ramirez (Jose & Harold) two Rosario (Eddie and Amed) and two lefty starters in the system both named Logan Allen.
I also forgot Perez (Roberto and Oliver).
@spitball
I’ve been thinking the same thing. We’ll find out as time goes on. We knew why Yamamoto was let go, but there was nothing indicated with Ramirez. We were expecting him to start, or in the very least platoon with in the surplus of OFs we have. This was just plain odd. But it was odd that the Pirates and Blue Jays previously gave up on him too – two teams that were also rebuilding.
Jeter and co have been preaching about building a winning culture. The only sign of this possibly happening could be the amount of time they left him down on the alternate site this year after he was cleared from Covid. Then he was finally brought up and got injured in his very first game.
We see the kid has potential to be a solid player, so this seems to be about something else.
@ MFB
There are just too many other OF’s that clearly the Marlins prefer to continue to invest in more than they are with Ramirez. And I have no problem with that.
Hope he does well with Cleveland but there’s a reason why nobody traded for him and he made it all the way to the Jndians (a team 10 games above .500 (last year) in the waivers.
Our OF is set anyway with Marte, Duvall, and Dickerson. With Sierra as the 4th OF. If Monte Harrison can hit around .240-..260 he would be starting but most likely will be back to the Minors with Brinson(has one more option) and Sanchez(whom also needs a bit more seasoning)
Not to mention promising prospects in bleday, burdock, Conine Jr among others.
Marlins are stacked in OF
Yeah, we’re definitely stacked. And I know there’s nothing to worry about because of our deep OF situation. I’m just puzzled what led to this. With Yamamoto, we saw it coming. With Villar last year, we saw that coming, especially with the clip of Cervelli questioning him in the dugout, and Rojas making his statements. But Ramirez came out of nowhere, with the only potential sign being the extended stay he was given at the alternate site last season. Maybe it was something that happened there. Who knows.
Good add by Cleveland.
We at least know our OF this year and can wait for the young guys to prove they deserve playing time over Dickerson, Marte and Duvall.
this is going to be an interesting season.
Go Marlins!
Just as simple as: The FO has praised they want players with good athleticism, something that Harold needs to work on. He might look a bit chubby, but that’s because he has a wider frame than normal. They call them ‘pitbull’ for that reason.
With Brinson, Mags and Monte coming up, they surely believe there is no space for Harold ever since they brought Duvall. What they don’t realize is that Harold can definitely perfom better that Adam in terms of hits and OBP, not to mention the better baserunning which is an approach the Marlins should focus more rather than trying to hit HRs.
As you, most of us Marlins Fans were surprised by the move. I was sure Brigham was next on the DFAd list given his health track and uncertainty.
Buena Harold!
Too good to pass through waivers unclaimed, and the Indians seems like the right place to be. Best of luck in Cleveland and you are already missed in Miami!
Good pickup imo
Are they still the Indians, or is that not taking effect for a year?
Anyways, this is a sneaky pickup by the tribe. As Marlinsfan will tell you, he has more potential than Brandon Nimmo. In fact, I can see him being a starter on the tribe this summer.
It’s not taking effect this year. I’m hoping for the Spiders.
As for him starting in the Indians’ OF, very possible, but also not a very high bar to clear.
@Ranger29
Yes, a good pickup. The kid is a nice little player. And not potential over Nimmo. He’s been a flat out better player. He can actually hit his way onto base. And he can actually run the bases better than Nimmo. Both suck on defense though.
Nice pickup though. When a couple of people posted that he may be able to bounce back after some time with the Marlins MiLB system, I responded that there’s no way he doesn’t get claimed.
Cleveland is a good place for him. He can play either as a corner OF or even a DH.
Idk how you can say that he’s better than Nimmo.
Don’t try and become a meme dude, I get you’re a big Marlins fan but you’ve been told multiple time why you’re wrong with this take.
Humphreys minors numbers are pretty nice, even for A ball. Something up with him? Hurt or just old for his league?
With the Mets, scouts were skeptical that his stuff would play against more advanced competition. That said, seems worth promoting him until he fails, which he hasn’t done yet.
frequent and extended injuries
Fun fact: Jordan’s favorite golfer is Tiger Woods.
You think Jordan’s career still has legs after this DFA?
Not cool.
Intriguing pickup. Might be a late bloomer, but the Tribe will be his fourth team so there seems to be something not to like.
Yeah.
Seems like even if he hits his ceiling – or whatever – he’s a pretty marginal player.
But man…that outfield mix for Cleveland is…rugged.
I know we’ve all started just taking it for granted but what that front office did to this club is terrible. This was a legitimate World Series contender not too long ago. & then year after year of stripping down to the bare minimum to chase Wild Card berths.
Brutal.
Think they jumped the shark this off-season though. Dumping their best player & Carrasco (& wow…talk about disrespect: this guy took way less money to stay there! In *Cleveland*! Lol) for a couple utility players is just too much.
Bummer.
I don’t see them finishing higher than 3rd or 4th for the next decade or so.
No wonder their fans are the angriest group of posters on MLBTR.
They’ve been completely screwed.
I’ve a silver lining of sorts, however. A different – yet very similar – strain of Dolan idiocy & incompetence separated me from the NBA. In the grand scheme of things this was a slight net improvement to the quality of my life.
So.
There’s hope. Of a fashion.
Ducky the Troll. Ducky, one of the most uninformed posters on MLBTR. The Indians Front Office is not the problem. It is a small market team financially impacted by the covid pandemic. The problem is the uneven playing field that the small market teams face since they do not have the same level and amount of revenue streams that the large markets have.
The Indian front office is very good. Since the start of the 2013 season, Cleveland, despite their small budget, have won more games than every other team except for the Dodgers.
Yes, I was very disappointed that they traded Carlos Carrasco. I will be a Met fan every fifth day when he pitches. I will always be a Carlos Carrasco fan.
I’ll let you ramble on with your uneducated comments. You are not worth getting angry about.
HJ, great post.. Very few small market teams run through the competitive cycle and are able to retool on the fly like the Tribe has. Pecota saying the Tribe is looking at 2nd place and remaining relevant says a heckuva lot more than Ducky’s distortion of history and circumstances.
No idea how I’m “trolling”.
But, whatever.
I see this particular “response” to me wasn’t intercepted by the mods. Unlike your first attempt. Which was. You know. The one full of your usual ranting & cussing that was deleted.
Hey…what am I telling you for? It was your post, uh?
😉
Lots of angry dude stuff here for a guy who’s “not getting angry”.
@avory-
I’ve a hundred bucks right now says Indians finish no higher than 3rd. Hell…I’d wager significantly more.
Which is in line with Las Vegas.
What’s distorted, bro? Indians had a sweet squad. They were fantastic at beating the crap out of marginal competition. Now they no longer do. Which was purposefully done. Pretty straightforward stuff, bro.
There’s nothing “smart” about sabotaging your team & screwing up a great rotation which afforded an actual championship opportunity.
Quite the opposite. Virtually every baseball fan with a modicum of understanding will realize that’s actually Really, Really Effin Stupid.
“when the Indians want my opinion they’ll tell me what to think” lol
Ducky, I have never cussed on this site or anywhere else so you continue to spread lies and your uneducated comments. Yes, I had an original short post that I chose to delete, not the moderators. I have never had a comment deleted on this site or any other site. I chose to wait until I had time to provide a more thoughtful comment. You made your comment trying to pick a fight which I will not enter into.. Have a wonderful evening.
Lol
Bro, it showed up on my email.Whatever.
Ya know, you don’t make being a baseball fan look very fun.
& if posting some BS makes you happy, well go bonkers donkey butt bananas with it, bro. But why not cowboy up & own it? I could at least respect that.
Avory, Fans of big market teams just can’t understand how much of an advantage their teams have. You can provide them several examples and they still refuse to see things from a small market viewpoint.
Ducky stooping to name calling and his lies again. I posted a comment and I chose to delete it, not the moderators as you are allowed 5 minutes to edit or delete a post which you know. That is a fact. There was no cussing in the comment. That is a fact. I know the truth and I am fine with how I comment and carry myself here and on other sites. Good night Ducky.
“name calling”?
Bro…go back. Read.
If anyone is engaging in that it would be you. Makes your above post & accusations look kinda unfounded.
Ya know?
Hey, bro. No worries. You love your Indians & are quick to anger if someone posts something about them you don’t agree with. No reason to get all agro & lie, & not man up.
Ya know?
Lots of really passionate baseball fans around here.
It’s cool, bro. Take a deeeeeeep breath. In with the good air out with the bad.
Stop typing “bro”. Actually just stop posting everyone is sick to death of your posts.
Hey, Lolzmets.
What’s up, bro?
I’m betting you still haven’t touched a real girl’s real b 00 b yet.
Because – ya know – you’re so weird & creepy, bro.
Pretty obvious when a dude uses “females” (lol!) when talking about women. Sure sign of a dude who ain’t gettin’ any & probably never has lmao.
Ya know?
Dead giveaway, bro.
Which – of course – you already know, bro!
🙂
I picked up Harold Ramirez in my expert NL-only during his first few days as a major leaguer and he looked like a very poor man’s Orlando Cepeda. But that kind of thing never lasts unless the hitter can adjust to the pitchers after the first time through. I’ll give Ramirez (and a lot of others) a mulligan for 2020. This is a good pickup for Cleveland who still could use some OF bats. Yes, they picked up Eddie Rosario, still have the disappointing Oscar Mercado, and Daniel Johnson is in camp but Ramirez makes a nice addition as a possible #4 OFer. Unless the team is counting on the return of Bradley Zimmer who’s been hurt since the Bush administration. Bush SENIOR!!
Even in the minors, he’s hit RHP better than LHP As strange as that is for a righty bat, the lack of hitting a southpaw will fit in nicely with most of the other OFs on the roster.
Indians need to find offense behind Jose Ramirez, Franmil Reyes, and Eddie Rosario. This could be a nice low key addition for them
All due respect to Eddie Rosario, but if he’s a team’s third best hitter, that’s not a very good offense, so yeah, they definitely need some help.
He’s the team’s second best hitter, and he hit cleanup for the Twins, so he must not be as bad as you think he is.
Besides, the rankings don’t matter at all; if you have nine guys who hit all the same, who’s best or worst isn’t really relevant is it? Would a lineup of nine Eddie Rosarios really be that bad? Nope, no it wouldn’t.
And if Rosario faces RHP only, even better. Career .818 OPS against RHP. A .507 slugging against RHP. Have a right handed bat ready for lefties and you have some good production out of LF.
More non-news.
Pittsburgh to relocate to Vancouver?
Only if they bring the most beautiful baseball park in North America with them.
But the Orioles will need Camden Yards…
Just keep on throwing the darts till one of them sticks, like the 80 shortstops they have in the minors……
This is a solid waiver pickup. Surprised so many teams have given up on him. Clubhouse cancer?
The opposite
I don’t really know anything about the guy, certainly not enough to dispute, but then why would teams give up on him so quickly? Usually, you get a pass on an injury year.
As a Marlins fan, I think feel like there may have been something going on behind the scenes that hasn’t come out. Ramirez had won the job over Brinson and was expected to have playing time, but then is gone out of nowhere.
Yes, it’s odd that we’re the third team to give up on him. Didn’t see this coming.
He’s just a low OBP, low SLG outfielder. Those guys simply don’t have much value.
That’s what you see in the stats, but seeing him play regularly, you see that he can hit and can run the bases, and has the potential to become a solid player. He won the starting job, but is gone out of nowhere.
Something more to this.
I’m surprised they decided to DFA Humphries as part of this deal. One would think there were ‘worse’ prospects at the end of their 40 man who could have been DFA’d instead. I’d be surprised if Humphries goes unclaimed. He might fit in well with Pittsburg, Baltimore or other struggling teams that are looking for building blocks.
Same here.. I thought Beau Taylor or Trevor Stephan would be more likely candidates. Maybe they saw something early with J-Hump they didn’t like or they have a trade lined-up.
Yeah, every team seems to have that one player who has no business holding on to a 40-man roster spot.
For years, it was Michael Martinez with the Indians, but it’s really looking like Beau Taylor is next. He’s the third catcher so that’s why he’s still there, but he’s also not very good.
Oh god, Michael Martinez. Nobody should ever be in extra innings of Game 7 of the World Series and have that guy step to the plate with your fate in his hands.
great pickup
Odds on favorite to win the AL Central- Cleveland
Pretty sure Jake Bauers is out of options? He was optioned in each of 2018. 2019, 2020.
If only there was a sports genie that could make Billy Hamilton a lead off hitter with at least a .400 OBP. What a waste of natural speed.
@neurogame. Remember Brett Butler, Willie McGee… Guys who could fly were taught to bunt and hit the ball on the ground and to get on base any way they could. A 30’ bunt turns into a double or triple with steals or a run scored on a long single.
But today, every hitting coach and agent wants fly balls, home runs and slugging percentage. Hamilton can still run with anyone, if only he had been convinced, taught or encouraged to just put the bat on the ball. I miss baseball common sense and fundamentals.
I’m with you, I miss the prototypical lead off hitters. I remember Jose Reyes when he first came up with the Mets. It seemed every time he got on base it was a guaranteed run. An infield single usually led to a steal of 2nd. Their 2 through 4 hitters at the time could usually bring him home.
Its maddening, especially in the later part of the game, to see hitters start off an inning by visibly trying to hit a 3-run bomb when there’s no one on base.
I felt sick when the Marlins released Austin Nola and Jarlin Garcia. I feel the same way about Harold Ramirez now. This guarantees that Harold will have a higher OPS than any Marlin outfielder this season.
I’ll miss Harold. A joy to watch.
An unworthy thought. The guys Harold was competing against for playing time were part of high profile trades while he was picked up “for free”. Front office pride?