Mets still believe in prospect Alex Ramirez despite what the numbers say
Mets outfilelder Alex Ramirez catches a fly ball during a spring training game against the Marlins on Feb. 27 in Port St. Lucie, Fla. Credit: Newsday/Alejandra Villa Loarca
PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. — Five years ago, Alex Ramirez joined the Mets on a huge signing bonus — more than $2 million — as a 16-year-old out of the Dominican Republic, a potential five-tool outfielder whose raw talent was easy to dream on.
Last summer, he finished his worst minor-league season, spent entirely with High-A Brooklyn. His batting ability regressed and his year was highlighted by the feat of becoming the Cyclones’ all-time hits leader, which is not what he had in mind.
This week, he revealed the offseason routine that he and the Mets hope un-stalls his career: five-days-per-week workouts at the Mets’ Dominican facility, where he revamped his swing with a trio of in-house hitting coaches.
That new level of commitment, combined with his obvious defensive and speed skills, is part of why the Mets added him to the 40-man roster in November and why they still believe in his major-league potential.
“I know that last year was tough and I don’t want to just happy-talk the fact that he struggled,” said Andrew Christie, the Mets’ director of player development. “However, he really committed himself in the offseason. He was at our academy five days a week — voluntarily. He’s on the 40-man. He doesn’t have to be there. But he said, ‘I want to be at the academy.’ ”
Still only 21 years old, Ramirez in years past had done his own thing, he said. The Mets’ place in Boca Chica was within driving distance of his home, but hey, it was the offseason. That was his time. He had his own routine.
Batting .221 with a .627 OPS in the lower minors has a way of changing one’s habits.
“I know they can help me the most,” Ramirez said through an interpreter. “I want to be a complete player.”
So he got to work with three of the Mets’ minor-league hitting coaches: Richie Benes, Bryce Wheary and Leo Hernandez.
Their goal was to shorten Ramirez’s swing. He is lanky — listed at 6-3 and 196 pounds — and had been striking out too much, more than 20% of his plate appearances in 2023.
They think they were successful, with Ramirez noting that his presence at the plate now features “less movement.” Christie said his swing is “in a much better and different place” than a year ago. But they won’t know for sure until they see him bat more.
Ramirez is slated to open 2024 with Double-A Binghamton. He said his goal is to reach the majors this year.
“He’s going to be someone who has the ability to impact the game defensively,” president of baseball operations David Stearns said. “He’s going to be someone who has the ability to impact the game on the basepaths. So the key is helping him get to the point where he can get on base more.
“That can be done in a variety of different ways. It can be done by hitting a little bit more. It also can be done by improving zone control a little bit more. So I think there are multiple paths for him to improve.”
Ramirez’s prospect star no doubt has faded. In its latest rankings, MLB Pipeline had him 16th in the Mets’ farm system (fifth among outfielders alone).
Despite his lackluster career to date, the Mets deemed Ramirez worthy of a spot on the 40-man roster. If they had not added him, another club could have plucked him out of their farm system in the Rule 5 draft in December (a move that would have required that team to carry him in the majors all season).
Stearns said the Mets thought “it was a possibility” that a team would have tried that. So they protected Ramirez, again betting on his potential.
The Mets still believe. His apparent newfound maturity helps.
“He really impressed me and our whole [organization] with how he responded this offseason,” Christie said. “It doesn’t just happen overnight. This entire last calendar year for him has been an exercise in maturing and seeing what it takes. I think he actually is pretty dialed in now and knows what it takes. I couldn’t be more excited to see how he does this year.”
Tim Healey is the Mets beat writer for Newsday. Born on Long Island and raised in Connecticut, Tim has previously worked for the South Florida Sun Sentinel, the Boston Globe and MLB.com. He is also the author of “Hometown Hardball,” a book about minor league baseball in the northeast.
