MASHANTUCKET, Conn. — The Red Sox have spent the offseason talking about upgrading the first base/DH position.
Boston hasn't mentioned Hanley Ramirez's name specifically, but its winter-long pursuit of a big bat to plug into the middle of its order is an implicit indictment of Ramirez's poor 2017 — and the club's justifiable lack of trust that he can return to form in 2018.
The day after the season ended, president of baseball [...]
MASHANTUCKET, Conn. — The Red Sox have spent the offseason talking about upgrading the first base/DH position.
Boston hasn't mentioned Hanley Ramirez's name specifically, but its winter-long pursuit of a big bat to plug into the middle of its order is an implicit indictment of Ramirez's poor 2017 — and the club's justifiable lack of trust that he can return to form in 2018.
The day after the season ended, president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski set an offensive upgrade as his top priority, locating first base or DH as the logical spot for one. On Friday, chairman Tom Werner acknowledged what everyone already knew: The team is in active negotiations with J.D. Martinez, who if signed would serve as the DH.
So how does Ramirez feel about all this?
One who hasn't always been shy about his abilities in the past, Ramirez is playing it quieter this winter.
"I try to be low-key and keep working," he said. "Do less talking. It's better when you do it that way."
The Red Sox would be wise not to count on Ramirez. A year removed from a 30 homer/100 RBI season, Ramirez was a different player in 2017, when shoulder soreness limited his ability to play first base and hampered his production at the plate. On a team full of players who performed worse than they had in 2016, no regular saw their OPS plummet more than Ramirez's, from .866 down to .750.
The others who underperformed are younger, and there's ample reason to believe in a bounce-back. Ramirez just turned 34 — there's the tiniest bit of gray encroaching upon the corners of his trademark dreadlocks — and he just had his second bad season in the last three. Perhaps 2016 was the last bounce he had in him.
And yet, on Saturday at least, Ramirez was largely unconcerned. He dismissed the Yankees' acquisition of Giancarlo Stanton as "good for them." He talked of playing 10 more years, of being the clean-up hitter for a championship team, of being "the Miami Hanley" as an offensive force. He was a man who felt no weight on his shoulders — nor any pain.
He's confident enough to look past the way external factors may affect his playing time. Any worries about an addition pushing him out of the lineup?
"No, you’ve just got to hit," he said. "If you hit, you're going to play. That’s all you’ve got to do. You’ve got to produce.
"I know I can hit, and I'm going to hit. It's not going to affect me."
What about that option for 2019, the one that vests when he steps to the plate for a 497th time in 2018?
"I'm not thinking about the 500 at-bats," said Ramirez. "I just want to win. If we win, that’s going to be taken care of."
The Red Sox as a team have a number of offensive question marks: Can Mookie Betts be an MVP contender again? Can Jackie Bradley Jr. and Xander Bogaerts find season-long consistency in the batter's box? How high are the ceilings for Andrew Benintendi and Rafael Devers?
But perhaps no one has a wider range of potential outcomes in 2018 than Ramirez. If healthy — and he pronounced himself so following October surgery on his left shoulder — Ramirez can be a potent middle-of-the-order bat. He carried the team offensively down the stretch in 2016, and he was its best hitter in last year's Division Series. A motivated Ramirez has always been a dangerous Ramirez.
At the same time, it wouldn't be stunning if the Red Sox jettisoned Ramirez entirely at some point in 2018. They don't want his option to vest, they've protected themselves at first base by re-signing Mitch Moreland. If Boston does indeed add another bat to serve as the designated hitter, Ramirez doesn't have to be part of the everyday lineup.
Ramirez has rebounded from this precipice before, rewriting the narrative surrounding him two years ago. Like then, he is encouraged by the relative health of his shoulders entering the season. He is motivated by the possibility this is his last chance to win with the Red Sox — the team he signed with three years ago because he had always wanted to win here.
"This is Boston. You’ve got to win here. If you don't win, you get out of here. That’s common sense. That’s how it is," Ramirez said. "It's why I want to be here. The challenge from the team, from the city, from the fans, it's unbelievable. It's so motivating, and I love that."