Boston Red Sox: Hanley Ramirez looks to return to form
The Boston Red Sox need some more power in their lineup. Hanley Ramirez is confident that he can be that player, despite his awful 2017 campaign.
It is no secret that the Boston Red Sox had a power outage last season. The Red Sox were last in the American League in home runs last year, and ranked 27th in baseball. That impressive power surge did not travel to Boston, with only four players hitting 20 or more homers last season. Hanley Ramirez led the team with 23 home runs, a pitiful total for a franchise that had gotten used to having some of the great sluggers in the game.
Those 23 homers were about the only thing Ramirez was able to contribute. In an awful season, he produced a .242/.320/.429 batting line; his OPS+ of 95 tied for the second worst mark of his career. However, Ramirez still thinks he has a bit left in the tank, saying he can hit 30 homers and drive in 100 runs once again. And, he thinks he has another decade left in him.
Hanley Ramirez says he's healthy and has 30 homers and 100 RBIs in him. Not worried about finding playing time. Believes if he hits, he'll play. Wants to play 10 more years in the big leagues.
— Jason Mastrodonato (@JMastrodonato) January 20, 2018
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The cynic would say that if Ramirez does play for that next decade, he will probably reach those goals of hitting 30 homers and driving in 100 runs. After all, a three home run, ten RBI season is certainly within the realm of possibility for Ramirez to accomplish every year.
Ramirez also has quite the incentive to perform well this season, as alluded to with his statement about playing time. Should he receive 497 plate appearances in the coming season, he will trigger a vesting option for 2019 worth $22 million. If he can return to his 2016 form, when he had a .286/.361/.505 batting line, hitting 30 homers and driving in 111 runs, he would easily reach that threshold.
However, that is not a given. Ramirez has dealt with injuries over the years, including in his return to Boston in 2015. That year, he had only 430 plate appearances in what was his worst season in the majors. At this point, Ramirez has to prove that he can once again contribute like the player he was, and avoid the injury bug, to earn that option.
Next: Red Sox give J.D. Martinez a contract offer
The Boston Red Sox need a power hitter in their lineup. Hanley Ramirez is confident he can be that player. He has 22 million reasons to hope that is the case.