Summarized from: Baní to The Land, J-Ram a giant among marginalized youth
By Anthony Castrovince,
Cleveland, September 17, 2023.
One day last summer, José Ramirez was telling the youngsters in the local Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities program (RBI) about the importance of education, perseverance, and focus. Most know Ramírez as the soul of the Cleveland Guardians, but in the poorest sections of Cleveland and in his hometown of Bani, Dominican Republic, Ramírez is more. For them, he is a giant. Says the Guardians’ manager for player engagement, José uses baseball as the means to keep kids motivated to get good grades, to have friends and to have a safe space to go after school and continue to be engaged in a healthy social life.
Against the odds, Ramírez established himself as one of the most impactful players in the major leagues. Yet the Guardians’ 2023 Roberto Clemente Award nominee is making an even bigger impact off of the field. He is the rare star who is electing to stay in a small market. He is ensuring a legacy in Cleveland that goes well beyond his records.
A square of dirt sat across the Rio Baní from José Ramírez’s humble home in Baní in the Dominican Republic. Ramírez would cross the river to play the game that would one day lift him beyond the water. It was difficult for my dad, he said through interpreter Auggy Rivero. He didn’t have much work, we didn’t have much money.
Ramírez was short, skinny, and often the youngest in his league. He learned how to overcome obstacles and how to surprise those who wrote him off. He learned how to play under pressure. Not just the pressure that comes with being the smallest player, but the pressure of providing for his family. At 13 years old, he played in an adult league. A machete sat behind home plate as a warning to those who did not perform.
It was around that time that MLB shortstop—and fellow Baní native—Miguel Tejada held a clinic at a local stadium where he distributed food and equipment to kids in need. Ramírez still remembers rushing to the line.
Look how old I am, said Ramírez, who turned 31 on Sunday.
I never forgot it.
The bats, balls and gloves provided by Tejada were a lifeline, but by the time he turned 17, Ramírez was nothing more than an extra man, a fill-in when somebody else was unable to play. One day, though, at a showcase where scouts observed prospects, Ramírez was playing second base with two Cleveland scouts in attendance. Ramírez got three hits that day. Then three hits the next. Then five hits in a doubleheader the day after that. Ramírez was signed for $50,000.
He had to earn each and every at-bat. He was never written
up as one of the best prospects in the Minor Leagues, said Guardians president Chris Antonetti. He never got caught up in any of that. He was just focused on being a good baseball player.
Ten years ago, Ramírez reached the big leagues. He was vital in Cleveland’s 2016 AL pennant-chase. Over the past seven seasons, the only players to accumulate more Wins Above Replacement* than Ramírez are Mookie Betts and Aaron Judge. But last year, Ramírez, two seasons away from free agency, agreed to a 7-year, $141 million extension to stay with the Guardians, leaving significant money on the table to stay in his adopted home. I’m like anyone in Cleveland, he said. I have my family here, and I plan to retire here. I will stay here all my life with my family, because my two children were born here. I see it as my home.
One night, in a particularly jubilant Cleveland clubhouse, a Guardians staffer asked Ramírez for his hat. It was his first three-homer game, and the Community Impact department wanted to capitalize on it by auctioning off his hat from for charity. Ordinarily eager to help, Ramírez removed his cap from his head and looked at it pensively. I would give this to you, he explained, but I wrote my grandmother’s name on the brim.
His grandmother Santa Ramírez whose death less than a month earlier had been gutting for Ramírez, credits his grandmother as his foundation. She taught me the values of helping the community, he said. Santa’s influence is felt in Baní, on that shabby field where Ramírez got his start: It’s called El Play de Villa Majega. In partnership with the Guardians, Ramírez is refurbishing it to make it a safe space. The reality is that those kids in the D.R. have no alternative. That’s why I feel it’s really important to help.
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Guardians staffers visiting the field with a camera crew came across a group of youngsters playing nearby who asked about the cameras. We said that we were there for José Ramírez, said Anna Bolton, assistant director of player development. All the kids’ faces lit up, and one little girl said, ‘He gave me this scooter!’ Ramírez had just staged a community event for Three Kings Day, a religious holiday in the Dominican Republic. The children told Bolton about all the gifts Ramírez had brought them, showing up with a truck full of toys. Bolton continued, He has stepped into the position of role model with dignity and mindfulness.
Ramírez has done that in his adopted hometown, too. The Guardians fund all the baseball programs in the city, including the Cleveland Metro School District. The Guardians are the only MLB team that recruits its players as baseball ambassadors—signing autographs, recording video messages, surprising kids at practices and games. Naturally, Ramírez is one. When he signed his extension with the club last year, he made it clear that he wanted to take his role next level. The result is the José Ramirez Fields, a $2.7 million project funded by Ramírez and Cleveland Guardians Charities, residing in the Clark-Fulton neighborhood, the largest Hispanic neighborhood in Ohio. Perhaps Ramírez’ most important legacy.**
I’m so proud of him, Guardians manager Terry Francona said. I love this kid, but this might have been the proudest I’ve been of him. He’s put his money where his mouth is.
And because his words carry so much weight in the Cleveland clubhouse, Ramírez influences teammates to get involved, too. At a recent team meeting, Ramírez implored the club’s younger players to assist with the RBI program. The very next day, rookies Bo Naylor and Xzavion Curry showed up.
Naylor said, “He is teaching us, too.”
José. José. José-José-José.
* Statistical analysis of how valuable a player is to his team.
** Additionally, the Davey Tree Expert Company announced the planting of
trees at the Clark Field project as part of the new Swing for the Trees
program.
