Aramis Ramirez and Age

Jul 30, 2014; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; Milwaukee Brewers third baseman Aramis Ramirez (16) in the dugout against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Aramis Ramirez had his Major League debut back in 1998, and he is one of the most accomplished third baseman in the game.  Ramirez is still putting up solid numbers sixteen years later and he remains fantasy relevant even with the questions of age and injury looming over him.  Aramis Ramirez has spent his entire career in the NL Central with the Pittsburgh Pirates, Chicago Cubs, and Milwaukee Brewers.

If you thought this passage sounded eerily familiar, then you are right because most of it is the same first paragraph as yesterday’s article about Adrian Beltre than can be found here.

While Beltre is the better of the two options, it is quite remarkable that two players that both debuted in 1998 are still two of the better hitting third basemen in the league.  However, the concerns that were illustrated with Beltre are magnified with Aramis Ramirez because he has dealt with more injuries and declining production in the past two seasons.

As recently as 2012, Aramis Ramirez was an elite fantasy baseball option where he scored 92 runs, slugged 27 home runs, drove in 105 RBI’s, somehow stole a career high 9 bases, and slashed a stellar .300/.360/.540.  Ramirez was able to produce these numbers at age 34 in his first season with the Milwaukee Brewers.

Unfortunately, the days of high-performing Aramis Ramirez are over, but we are left with a pretty solid version of Aramis Ramirez that is still worth starting in fantasy leagues.  In 133 games in 2014, Ramirez’s numbers looked like this:

[table id=1290 /]

While those numbers are certainly respectable, there is one more concern besides his age and injury risk.  The potential issue is that his 2014 walk rate was a measly 4%.  It seemed like all of the Brewers were free swingers this past season.  While it may not exactly kill Ramirez’s fantasy value, a super low walk rate will not aid his value in OBP and OPS leagues.

Ramirez showed signs of slight decline across the board, but his .310 BABIP helped mask some of the numbers.  Amazingly enough, Aramis Ramirez is a career .285 hitter, but his career BABIP is only .293.  While some of the decline is natural due to the fact that Aramis Ramirez is 36 and counting, his precipitous decline to a .28 BB/K ratio is pretty scary.  Luckily, that number can only go up (I hope).

Some good news is that Aramis Ramirez accepted his $14 million dollar option last Monday, so he will remain in his NL Central comfort zone and more importantly in hitter-friendly Miller Park.

Aramis Ramirez is no longer the great hitter he was from 2001-2012, but he still offers nice value if you want a third baseman with a decent power-average combo.  And who knows, maybe Ramirez can turn back the clock one last time.