Ramirez to get more time at DH

The Red Sox have found their replacement for David Ortiz: Hanley Ramirez.

After officially signing free agent first baseman Mitch Moreland to a one-year contract worth $5.5 million yesterday, the Sox revealed their plans at designated hitter for next year.

“Against right-handed starters, Mitch would be the first baseman,” manager John Farrell said. “That gives us the flexibility to DH Hanley in that spot.”

As a DH, Ramirez is a lifetime .331 hitter with a 1.014 OPS and 10 homers in just 36 games, and the Red Sox took notice of that last year, using him at DH on most days when Ortiz needed a rest.

Moreland, who hits left-handed, has a career .778 OPS against right-handed pitchers compared to a .673 OPS against lefties, though he had his best season against lefties last year when had a .779 OPS in such spots.

To begin the season, Moreland will likely be on the bench against lefties, allowing the Sox to then use Ramirez at first base.

“We’re certainly open to his atbats growing in number against left-handers,” Farrell said. “We also have the ability against a quality left-hander that Hanley would go back to first base and then we can rotate some guys through the DH spot.”

Moreland, 31, won the Gold Glove at first base last season. He’s also played sparingly in the outfield.

The Red Sox didn’t come to the conclusion that Moreland was a good fit until they acquired reliever Tyler Thornburg from the Milwaukee Brewers. That deal freed up some money to sign Moreland, a proven commodity, at a value price.

“First of all, he’s a good player,” Red Sox president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski said. “He provides good defense and good offense. He’s an outstanding defensive player. A left-handed hitter which we were searching for. He’s always had a reputation of a gamer and I know when I was with the Tigers, one of our scouts,

Dick Egan, was always telling me ‘We have to get Mitch Moreland.’ ”

At Fenway Park, Moreland is a career .341 hitter with a 1.061 OPS in 41 at-bats.

“Super excited,” Moreland said. “Always been a fan of Boston, the fans, the background, history of the team. Playing against them is just a fun atmosphere to be in. To be on the home side of it and have the fans cheering for us makes it that much more fun. It’s a place I’ve always felt comfortable. I’m looking forward to getting out there.”

To make room on the roster for Moreland, left-handed pitcher

Williams Jerez was designated for assignment.

Lazy days are over

Pablo Sandoval continues to show remorse for his two disappointing seasons since signing a $95 million contract with the Sox.

Sandoval, who has been living in Fort Myers this offseason while being closely monitored by the team, admitted to ESPN.com yesterday that he became lazy after signing the deal.

“My career had fallen into an abyss because I was so complacent with things that I had already accomplished,” Sandoval said. “I did not work hard in order to achieve more and to remain at the level of the player that I am and that I can be.”

Sandoval is expected to compete with Brock Holt for the starting third base job. He has three years left on his contract, with an option for a fourth year.

“I have been following a really strict routine that has taken a lot of dedication from my part,” Sandoval said to ESPN. “It has not been easy to wake up every single day at 6:30 in the morning to then head to the gym and start a full day of work. But you have to have that kind of dedication if you want to achieve the goals you have set for yourself.

“I am not taking anything for granted. I am here to work hard. I’m not thinking about the position or not. I am starting from scratch, and I am here to show what I can do on the field.”

Rutledge signs on

The Red Sox added another utility infielder to their roster.

Josh Rutledge, who had a .696 OPS in 67 games in two seasons here but spent most of 2016 on the disabled list recovering from a knee injury, was acquired in the Rule 5 draft from the Colorado Rockies, who had signed him as a free agent in November. The Sox wanted a right-handed hitting utility man to pair with Holt.

“We have Marco Hernandez, too, but (with Hernandez and Holt) being two left-handed hitters, when we sat down and I asked John Farrell to take a look at it, he said we really could use a right-hand hitting guy,” Dombrowski said. “Now, Deven Marrero can also do that but he’s more of a defensive type guy. I said I’d rather have somebody who can swing the bat a little bit more.”