CLEVELAND — Think about the legendary week Jose Ramirez just had, culminating in the Guardians clinching a playoff berth Sept. 27 with a dramatic 3-2 win over the Texas Rangers at Progressive Field.
On Sept. 24, Ramirez reached 3,000 career total bases, joining Earl Averill (3,201) as the only players in franchise history to achieve the milestone. On Sept. 25, Ramirez set the club record for extra-base hits with 726, surpassing Averill (725).
On the morning of Sept. 27, the city of Cleveland named a street connecting Jose Ramirez Field at Clark Field to Clark Avenue in honor of the seven-time All-Star third baseman. It’s called Jose Ramirez Way.
Jose Ramirez provided Guardians with a spark, Johnathan Rodriguez with heroics and C.J. Kayfus with a walk-off win
Later the same day, after the Rangers jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the first inning, Ramirez lined a two-out single to center field off starting pitcher Jacob Latz. Ramirez then stole second base, but it didn’t really matter because first-time Guardians cleanup hitter Johnathan Rodriguez smashed a two-run home run to right-center field.
With Ramirez’s spark and Rodriguez’s heroics, the Guardians turned a one-run deficit into a one-run lead. They finished the job with walk-off victory in the ninth inning when rookie C.J. Kayfus was hit by a Robert Garcia pitch with the bases loaded, sending the winning run home with two outs.
The Guardians clinched at least a wild-card playoff berth, meaning they will be in the postseason for the second consecutive season.
They followed the 33-year-old Ramirez’s lead all the way back to October baseball.
“Jose’s always in the middle of everything, it seems, for us,” Guardians president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti said.
Jose Ramirez embodies ingredients Cleveland Guardians needed to make historic comeback in MLB playoff race
The Guardians (87-74) were 15½ games behind the Detroit Tigers (87-74) in the American League Central Division standings on July 8, 10½ games back on Sept. 1 and 9½ games behind on Sept. 10.
Now they have a chance to win the AL Central. To seize the division crown for the second year in a row, the Guardians need either a win Sept. 28 over the Rangers in the regular-season finale or a Tigers loss to the Boston Red Sox. The Guardians own the tiebreaker against the Tigers.
The Guardians were dead and buried several times this season. Ramirez embodies the fight they needed to resurface.
“If you get caught up in those things early on, you’re going to be doomed,” two-time All-Star left fielder Steven Kwan said. “You look at Jose. I don’t think he cares about all that kind of stuff. He just wants to do as well as he can every single day. So we look toward our leader. If he’s moving forward, we’re moving forward with him.”
Guardians star Jose Ramirez’s teammates view him as future Hall of Famer who possesses the consistent hustle of a rookie
Ramirez’s elite production — a .282 batting average with 34 doubles, 30 homers, 85 RBIs, 41 stolen bases and an .863 OPS this season — accounts for only part of his value. His attitude, confidence and relentlessness combine to provide his many young teammates with a perfect example to emulate.
“He’s a future Hall of Famer and he plays baseball like a rookie — hungry,” outfielder and first baseman Jhonkensy Noel said. “I see him like that, so sometimes I tell myself, ‘Why can’t I do it?’ I’m not going to be fast like him, or maybe I’m not going to hit like him. But to play every day like he plays hard, yeah, I can do it. Run the bases hard. Ground ball? Run the bases hard. Fly ball? Run the bases hard. Play defense. I always see him do stuff like that.”
Jose Ramirez Way ceremony helps lighten Guardians’ mood amid pressure
The city of Cleveland named a street connecting José Ramírez Field to Clark Avenue in honor of the Guardians star. It’s called Jose Ramirez Way.
Members of Cleveland Guardians coaching staff and roster attend ceremony for Jose Ramirez Way
The Ramirez way — his ethos, not the street — is at the core of the Guardians’ culture. He’ll eventually have a statue in downtown Cleveland because of it.
“Anything less than giving your best effort on every play is unacceptable,” first baseman and designated hitter Kyle Manzardo said. “That’s kind of the standard that I think he’s raised everybody to. If you’re on the team, you catch on real quick. That’s kind of what we’re about.”
Guardians manager Stephen Vogt and other members of the organization attended a ceremony for Jose Ramirez Way on the morning of Sept. 27. Vogt said the community event helped lighten the clubhouse’s mood ahead of a pressure-packed game against the Rangers.
The night ended in revelry.
Ramirez being in the playoffs is good for MLB. Special players belong on the sport’s grandest stages. He’ll soon make his seventh postseason appearance, and it’ll be Cleveland baseball’s 18th all-time trip to the playoffs.
“He runs hard, he works hard, shows up every day, brings energy every day, gives everything he has, so everybody else does the same,” Vogt said. “It does make this job [as manager] a lot easier when your best player models how a baseball player should play. The trickle-down effect is huge.”
It’s a massive reason the Guardians are returning to the playoffs.
Nate Ulrich is the sports columnist of the Akron Beacon Journal and a sports features writer. Nate can be reached at nulrich@thebeaconjournal.com. On Twitter: @ByNateUlrich.