José Ramírez goes 0-for-3 in Game 2 defeat

With the American League Central wrapped up, Guardians’ skipper Stephen Vogt is using Sunday as an opportunity to give several of his regulars a day off including Ramírez, Steven Kwan, Chase DeLauter, Patrick Bailey and Brayan Rocchio.

Ramírez doubled to begin the fourth, advanced to third on a flyout and scored on Jo Adell’s tapper in front of the plate. The steal, his 35th of the year, came later in the eighth. He’s seventh in the majors in steals, and with just four caught stealings, he has the best success rate of any of the 12 players with 30 steals.

It’s been a down year for Ramírez based on his surreal track record of first-round fantasy production that stretches back nearly a decade. However, he’s come on strong approaching the finish line when the Guardians, and fantasy managers, have needed him most this season. The 34-year-old stalwart came through with a game-tying RBI single in the fourth inning before extending Cleveland’s lead with a solo homer in the sixth inning. It was his 12th big fly of the season. He also picked up his 34th stolen base of the year in this one. With the victory, the Guardians remain in a virtual tie with the White Sox for the AL Central division title with just over one week left in the regular season.

J-Ram has struggled badly since returning from a fractured hamate bone earlier this summer. Wednesday’s doubles were his first extra-base hits in September. While he has somewhat salvaged his fantasy performance with 33 stolen bases, his .230 batting average and lack of power have taken their toll on teams where he was a first-round selection. Determining to what degree his second-half struggles can be attributed to the injury will go a long way toward setting his 2027 ADP and bounce-back potential.

Ramírez hasn’t delivered his usual first-round fantasy production this season, mostly due to the lingering impact of a mid-June hamate fracture. However, he’s still managed to reach the lofty 30-steal plateau for the third consecutive season.

The 33-year-old superstar has really struggled since returning from a broken hamate bone, slashing a woeful .214/.289/.270 with just one homer, 15 RBI and seven stolen bases in 180 plate appearances across 42 games. Angel Genao will cover third base in his absence and will bat seventh for the Guardians against Twins’ right-hander Joe Ryan.

Ramírez dropped a routine foul popup from Coby Mayo for the error. Mayo then hit the next pitch 407 feet for a solo homer. The hitless game leaves Ramírez 5-for-36 with no extra-base hits this month. He’s hit .227/.304/.287 with one home run in 40 games since returning from a broken hamate bone, an injury that has a history of sapping power from hitters.

It looks to be nothing more than a routine day off for the superstar third baseman after playing in both halves of Friday’s doubleheader and Saturday’s contest as well. Look for him to make an appearance off the bench in a key late-game situation if needed. Angel Genao will cover third base in his absence and bat sixth against Tigers’ right-hander Jackson Jobe on Sunday afternoon in Cleveland.

The homer was a two-run blast off Seth Lugo in the fourth, J-Ram’s first since June 6. He missed time with a hamate injury, which has since sapped some of his power. It was only his 11th homer of the season, though he’s partially made up for it with 31 stolen bases. Ramírez is on pace for his third consecutive 40-steal season despite the injury. Flashing more power down the stretch will go a long way toward easing any concerns fantasy managers have entering 2027, his age-34 campaign.

Ramírez’s final double was in the 10th inning to score a pair, and it gave Cleveland an 8-6 lead and ultimately the victory. The stolen base is the 30th of the season for the perennial MVP candidate. Because of injury and inconsistent play, he won’t be in those discussions this year, but Tuesday showed that he’s nowhere close to done being an impactful player.