While his teammates are grabbing most of the headlines, one of the keys to the Mets’ second-half resurgence has been Wilson Ramos. The player that too many people schemed over how to send out of town before the trade deadline is riding a 16-game hitting streak and in 34 games (31 starts) since the All-Star break, Ramos has 22 RBIs, 17 of which have come here in the month of August.
Ramos was the Mets’ third choice at catcher this offseason, as they heavily engaged the Marlins on a trade for J.T. Realmuto and also offered a four-year contract to free agent Yasmani Grandal before settling on a two-year deal with Ramos. Their new catcher had some big RBIs in the early going but after a quick start to the season, Ramos had a three-week stretch where he was absolutely brutal, hitting just .153 with a .457 OPS in 81 PA.
But since May 10, it’s been a different story. In his last 296 PA, Ramos is slashing .300/.365/.464 for an .829 OPS. In that same span, Realmuto has an .819 OPS and Grandal checks in with an .862 mark. But given how they didn’t have to give up anything but money for Ramos, while the Marlins were shooting for the moon in a trade package for Realmuto, it’s hard to be disappointed with how it shook out here. Would you rather have Ramos and Amed Rosario or Realmuto? And while Grandal is turning in another fine year, Ramos is $10 million cheaper and under control for next year, while Grandal has a mutual option and likely to be a free agent again next season.
One of the things that was disappointing early on for Ramos was his defensive work. No one expected him to be a Gold Glove backstop but the belief was that he would be solid overall behind the dish and provide a significant upgrade throwing out runners. But he did not look good at all blocking balls or framing pitches, his caught stealings were no-existent and the team’s top two pitchers expressed a preference for working with Tomas Nido and had results with the backup catcher to support that point of view.
Ramos took it in stride and said he wanted all of the pitchers to feel comfortable with him. He told Mike Puma of the New York Post, “I try to give 100% behind the plate and protect (the pitchers.) If they feel good, I’m good. But if they feel bad, I feel bad too.”
Jacob deGrom had a 3.98 ERA through his first nine games and then Nido caught him three straight outings. After being nothing like his 2018 self in the beginning of the year, deGrom put up a 2.04 ERA once Nido replaced Ramos. But Ramos has caught deGrom the majority of times since June 7 and in those 13 games, nine with Ramos and four with Nido, deGrom has a 1.90 ERA and a 0.973 WHIP and no one bats an eye when Ramos is catching him.
Noah Syndergaard worked very well with Nido last year before Ramos was on the team. But the Mets made no effort whatsoever to match him with Nido early this season and Syndergaard struggled mightily. Nido was matched with deGrom much sooner than he was with Syndergaard. After his start on June 15, Syndergaard had a 4.55 ERA. Nido caught his next seven games and Syndergaard responded with a 2.74 ERA in that span. But Ramos has caught two of the last three starts by Syndergaard and in those two games, Syndergaard has allowed just 2 ER in 13 IP.
Ramos was behind the plate Thursday night when Syndergaard retired the first 16 batters he faced. He did not allow a baserunner until he shook off Ramos on a pitch. Perhaps nothing more than a coincidence. Still, it’s noteworthy how good Ramos has looked calling games here recently for the Mets’ top two pitchers.
No one is ever going to confuse Ramos with Johnny Bench behind the plate. But as much as he deserved criticism for his work early in the season, he deserves praise for the work he’s put in and the results he’s gotten from the staff lately. And while the focus earlier was on deGrom and Syndergaard, it should also be pointed out how he’s developed a nice rapport with Steven Matz. In his last seven starts, Matz has a 2.81 ERA and has allowed just 3 HR in 41.2 IP. The Mets’ announcers have talked repeatedly how Ramos is getting Matz to use his curve more recently and the results speak for themselves.
We’ve gone from thinking that Ramos should catch 60% of the time to wondering when he should get a day off.
It’s been a remarkable in-season turnaround for Ramos, both offensively and defensively, even if it’s getting lost in the shuffle with the team’s strong play thanks to multiple contributors. Perhaps if Ramos can keep his hitting streak going a few more games, that will get some attention. After going 0-4 on August 2, Ramos has hit in every game he’s played since, including one where he came in as a defensive replacement in the ninth inning.
Ramos has a .996 OPS during his hitting streak, which was kept alive a few days ago with an infield single, a sure sign that the gods are smiling on him in this stretch. If he extends it a few more games, we might even hear some about a run at the club’s all-time hitting streak record. The current holder is Moises Alou, who recorded a 30-game streak back in 2007.
What I’ve seen in this arena and all over Facebook groups is often a lack of patience with our players. Ramos’ defense was certainly an issue early on and many were and still are eager to see a Nido behind the dish despite his inability to throw out runners and his obvious lack of hitting. Somehow it was forgotten that Ramos successfully caught a great staff in DC and knows how to play the game. Astute fans knew we were not getting a Johnny Bench or Jerry Grote and his strength was his bat. As you noted he had a very bad stretch but over the last month he has returned to the clutch hitter we expected and his 16 game hit streak should not be overlooked. His handling of the staff should also not be overlooked.
On another note we should give kudos to the ageless Phil Regan for some of the resurgence of our starters and the pen. Even Diaz has improved although I still hold my breath when he comes in. Even Familia looks better and the new Sewald needs to stay on the team even with the short sample he has shown. Could you imagine where we would be had our pen been bad and not horrible up to the break? Closing in on a playoff spot but a lot more wins left to get. Can’t expect help from the teams in front of us. Let them hear our footsteps and worry about a series against the Mets. One day/win at a time.
The totality of remarkable turn around seasons is quite frankly beyond imagination.
Rosario, Ramos, Davis, Noah, Matz, Wheeler, Conforto, Lagares, hell, even Panik and Familia. There’s no math for this.