Washington Nationals: ACL Injury Clouds Wilson Ramos’ Free Agency
By Tim Haberin
Washington Nationals catcher Wilson Ramos is done for the year with a torn ACL. How will the injury affect his upcoming free agency?
Things were going quite well for Wilson Ramos in 2016. The Washington Nationals catcher was putting the finishing touches on the best season of his career before hitting free agency this winter. Then, disaster struck. Ramos injured his right knee while leaping for a relay throw to home plate during Monday night’s game against the Diamondbacks. Yesterday the team confirmed he had torn his ACL and would miss the rest of the season and playoffs.
While losing Ramos’ bat in the lineup will be a significant blow for the Nationals offense, the injury also places a big question mark on the 29-year-old’s impending free agency. Ramos took a chance on himself, one that appeared to be paying off handsomely until this disappointing setback. The Nats reportedly made an extension offer worth just more than $30 million over three years to the catcher during the season, but he rejected it in hopes of finding more on the open market.
Before the ACL tear, he undoubtedly would have. Ramos owns a hearty .307/.354/.496 slash line on the year along with 22 home runs and 80 RBI. His .850 OPS is a career high by an .071 margin (.779 OPS in 2011). Among catchers in both leagues, he leads with a 124 wRC+. He has also been solid defensively as well, ranking seventh in Fangraphs’ Defense rating with a mark of 8.4. This stellar overall performance earned Ramos his first All-Star nod in July.
As this offseason’s clear-cut best free agent catcher, Ramos would likely have netted himself a nice deal, perhaps even something in line with the five-year, $85 million pact Brian McCann inked with the Yankees in 2013. It’s hard to see that happening now given the nature of the injury. Ramos previously tore his ACL in the same knee in May 2012, and it forced him to miss the remainder of that season after playing only 25 games.
Considering this latest tear happened so late in the season, Ramos stands to miss a chunk of the 2017 campaign as well. Amidst that uncertainty and his history with this kind of injury, clubs just aren’t going to make a major financial commitment to Ramos at this time. The other backstop options in the free agent pool aren’t nearly as appealing, but there are a few names, Matt Wieters chief among them.
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The 30-year-old Wieters hasn’t exactly set the league on fire during his contract year (.705 OPS, 1.5 WAR), so if anything Ramos’ injury could give the Yankees more bargaining power as they are expected to continue shopping McCann. The 12-year veteran hasn’t been great this year either, but he still has some pop in his bat (19 HR) and will have a relatively manageable two years and $34 million left on his deal. Rumors about a reunion with the Braves were popular around the trade deadline, and Atlanta should be one of the more prominent teams looking for a catcher this offseason.
As for Ramos, the Nats could still give him a qualifying offer, but it would be a real gamble to pay nearly $17 million to someone who might not even play half the season. A one-year, “prove it” deal for less money probably makes more sense, whether in Washington or somewhere else. That might be Ramos’ best bet if he hopes to still cash in a year from now. If he can come back healthy and pick up where he left off in terms of production, he should still attract his share of suitors. That’s a decent-sized “if,” though.
Unfortunately, Ramos’ value will likely never reach what it was right before the injury. Even if he signs a one-year deal and manages to put up good numbers upon returning in 2017, he’ll be a year older and coming off his second ACL tear. He could also find himself competing with Jonathan Lucroy on next year’s free agent market, assuming the latter doesn’t sign an extension at some point.
Any way you slice it, this injury is a devastating development for a player who could very well have been headed toward a five-year contract for good money in the coming months. The offseason typically has a few surprises, but it’s looking like Ramos is going to have to considerably temper his expectations and focus on rebuilding his stock in the meantime.