José Ramírez getting breather on Friday

Being activated somewhat surprisingly and not playing in a single rehab game after breaking his hamate bone about six weeks ago, Ramírez wasted no time making an impact in his return from the injured list. He singled in the first inning, tagged to second base on a fly ball, and then came around to score. He also legged out an infield single in the second that pushed another run across. It wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows though. Ramírez made a throwing error to start the eighth that opened the door for a big Twins rally and he grounded out with the bases loaded to end the bottom of that inning. Regardless, it’s great news for the Guardians and fantasy managers alike that Ramírez is back.

Ramírez was placed on the IL with a fractured hamate bone on June 16th, so he has missed just over a month and will be right back out on the field for the Guardians. We could see a bit of a power dip in the first few weeks back, but Ramírez has always hit for power thanks to how often he pulls the ball in the air and not impressive raw exit velocities, so perhaps he can survive the recovery from hamate surgery better than others. Regardless, he should be back in all fantasy lineups.

Vogt didn’t rule out the possibility before Friday’s postponement due to poor air quality that Ramírez could return without a minor league rehab assignment. The veteran third baseman is working his way back from left hamate surgery last month and is now nearly five weeks removed from the procedure after initially being given a five-to-seven week recovery timeline. While his return doesn’t appear imminent, he’s already progressed to facing live pitching, leaving open the possibility that he rejoins Cleveland’s lineup within the next couple weeks. It’s an encouraging development for fantasy managers coming out of the All-Star break.

Antonetti noted that Ramírez has progressed as planned in his recovery from surgery to repair a fractured left hamate bone, but that he still has boxes to check before he’s going to be able to return to game action. The expectation is that he’ll start to face overhead pitching soon. Ramírez was given an initial timeline of 5-7 weeks when he hit the injured list three weeks ago on June 14.

Ramírez underwent surgery to remove the hook of his fractured left hamate bone after suffering the injury on a swing during last Saturday’s game against the division-rival Tigers. The 33-year-old perennial fantasy force will be on the shelf until at least late July. He was hitting .239/.339/.418 with 42 runs scored, 10 homers, 33 RBI and 24 stolen bases across 314 plate appearances in 72 games, delivering top-five overall fantasy value at the hot corner. It’ll be challenging for fantasy managers to replace Ramírez’s contributions, but at least he’ll make it back sometime after next month’s All-Star break.

The 33-year-old superstar suffered the unfortunate injury on a swing during Saturday’s game. He’s expected to miss at least a month’s worth of action and as we have often seen with hamate bone injuries, his power may be impacted upon his return. Gabriel Arias was activated from the injured list in a corresponding move and figures to share time with Daniel Schneemann at third base to cover for the loss of Ramírez.

That’s always the fear when a player starts shaking his wrist after a swing. Ramírez tends to be a quick healer, but he will almost surely miss at least a month. The Guardians are about to get Gabriel Arias back and could put him in the mix along with Daniel Schneemann at third, but prospect Angel Genao could also be an option.

It looked like it might be a hand/wrist issue. Ramírez being the third Guardians player leaving due to injury forced the Guardians to put Rhys Hoskins in left for his first outfield appearance since 2018. Kyle Manzardo replaced Hoskins at first base.

Ramírez led off the third inning with a solo homer off Jack Leiter to put the Guardians on the board. He then singled, stole second, and scored in the fifth. Ramírez would reach for a third time on a walk in the sixth. The 33-year-old third baseman is hitting .242/.349/.434 with 10 homers, 39 runs scored, 33 RBI, and 23 steals across 289 plate appearances. The 23 steals have Ramírez tied for the MLB lead with Bobby Witt Jr. and Nasim Nuñez.

J-Ram is off to a hot start this week at Yankee Stadium, as he doubled three times in Tuesday’s series opener. His 21 stolen bases lead the American League, and he trails Nasim Nuñez by one for the MLB lead. Prior to 2024, Ramírez never had a stolen base attempt rate higher than 3.5%, per Statcast. He’s been at 4.5% or higher in each of the past three seasons. The power is down so far this season, but 40+ bags appear to be a given for a third consecutive campaign.