Ramirez is showing signs of making history in Cleveland
Jose Ramirez is chasing his first career MVP award, having already been a finalist three times. He’s also in line to put up one of — if not the — best season by a Guardians position player in the franchise’s history.
Ramirez has been in the midst of the best season of his career, entering Friday hitting .301 with a .391 on-base percentage, a 1.015 OPS, 16 home runs, 21 doubles, four triples, a league-leading 62 RBIS and 12 stolen bases. He’s in the middle of a four-horse race for American League MVP along with Aaron Judge, Rafael Devers and Mike Trout. Shohei Ohtani, arguably the most talented overall player since Babe Ruth and possibly even before, could jump into that mix soon.
Ramirez is also in line to join the ranks of some of the best seasons ever put up by a Cleveland position player. Here’s a look at the players he’s chasing, first by weighted runs created plus (WRC+, an overall offensive statistic with 100 being league average) and FWAR (Wins Above Replacement). For the Cleveland-centric sections, multiple seasons by the same player will be rolled into one and will just feature their best of the two (or three), thus getting five different players into the mix.
Top Cleveland seasons by WRC+
Nap Lajoie, 1904 — 196 WRC+
Lajoie had an incredible run not long after the turn of the century, and he owns the top two Cleveland seasons by WRC+ with a 196 in 1904 and then a 194 in 1910.
A 196 WRC+ means he was 96% better than the average hitter that season. In 1904, he led the league through his entire slashline in average (.376), on-base percentage (.413) and slugging percentage (.546). He also led the league with 208 hits, 302 total bases, 49 doubles and 102 RBIS.
Jim Thome, 2002 — 189 WRC+
Thome set the franchise record with 52 home runs in 2002 to go with a .304 average, .445 on-base percentage, 118 RBIS, 101 runs scored and a league-leading .677 slugging percentage. He didn’t get any extra credit for his 511-foot home run, though, which remains a ballpark record.
Shoeless Joe Jackson, 1913 — 186 WRC+
Shoeless Joe’s closest call with the MVP award came in 1913, when he finished second. That year he led the league in hits (197), doubles (39), slugging percentage (.551) and OPS (1.011). He also hit seven home runs and 17 triples and drove in 71 runs.
Top Cleveland seasons by a position player by FWAR
Lou Boudreau, 1948 — 10.9 FWAR
Easily the best season by a Cleveland position player, Boudreau in 1948 helped to lead Cleveland to the franchise’s second World Series title. That year he hit .355 with a .453 on-base percentage to go with 18 home runs, 106 RBIS and 116 runs scored.
Nap Lajoie, 1906 — 9.4 FWAR
Lajoie had two 9.0-plus FWAR seasons, but the better of the two was in 1906. That year he hit .355 with a .392 on-base percentage, a league-leading 48 doubles, nine triples, 91 RBIS, 88 runs scored and 20 stolen bases. Lajoie has three of the top six Cleveland seasons by FWAR.
Top all-time seasons by an MLB third baseman by FWAR
Darrell Evans, 1973 — 9.7 FWAR, 158 WRC+
No, the greatest season by Wins Above Replacement for a third baseman doesn’t belong to a Schmidt, a Rodriguez or a Rosen. It’s co-owned by Darrell Evans, who in 1973 hit .281 with a .403 on-base percentage, 41 home runs, 114 RBIS and 104 runs scored. He also led the league with 124 walks that season. Amazingly, the season that’s tied for the best ever by a third baseman was only good enough for an 18thplace finish in MVP voting that season.
Adrian Beltre, 2004 — 9.7 FWAR, 161 WRC+
One of the most consistent hitters of a generation, even when his swing took him down to one knee, Beltre in 2004 hit .334 with a .388 on-base percentage to go with 48 home runs, 121 RBIS and 104 runs scored, good enough to tie Evans for the best season ever (by FWAR) at the position.
Alex Rodriguez, 2007 — 9.6 FWAR, 175 WRC+
A-rod put up a monster offensive season in 2007, hitting .314 with a .422 on-base percentage, 54 home runs, 156 RBIS, 146 runs scored and 24 stolen bases en route to the MVP award. His defense severely hurt his total value, though, leaving him just short of Evans and Beltre in FWAR.
Ramirez on pace to challenge best season by a third baseman
Ramirez has a 185 WRC+, which would rank seventh in Cleveland franchise history (Lajoie and Jackson both would have multiple seasons above this). It’d also be the third best WRC+ by a Cleveland hitter since World War I. Ramirez has also accrued 3.9 FWAR through the team’s 65 games. That puts him on pace for 9.7 FWAR, which would be in a three-way tie with Evans and Beltre for the best season ever at that position. Devers is just ahead of Ramirez with 4.0 FWAR thus far this season, but the Red Sox have played 70 games, putting him on pace for 9.2 FWAR.