Wilson Ramos talks trade, the postseason and his future

By César Augusto Márquez

Wilson Ramos analyzes his career in retrospect and feels satisfied. His path to Major League Baseball was different than most. At one point in his youth he had stopped playing baseball due to not having the money to buy the necessary catching equipment.

Now he is a stellar catcher with a team that was in playoff contention deep into the 2018 season.

This season brought the Venezuela native back to the National League after a late July trade from the Tampa Bay Rays to the Philadelphia Phillies. Traded in the midst of his second All-Star season was meant to put him on a team with playoff aspirations.

While Ramos has played well since joining the Phillies, Philadelphia fell off its strong early season pace. Nonetheless, Ramos is content with his performance and remains optimistic about what the future holds.

“I think that if I evaluated things, I can feel satisfied,” he said. “All the achievements that I have as a player I owe principally to two people, my mother Maria and my grandfather Jesús, who unfortunately died a couple of years ago. They were the ones who insisted on taking to play baseball and due to them I am here.”

Venezuelan Roots  

Ramos was born in Valencia, capital of Carabobo, just over 100 miles west of Caracas. The state of Carabobo has a reputation for developing All-Star catchers.

Carabobo has produced some stellar catchers, including fellow All-Stars Willson Contreras of the Cubs and Salvador Pérez of the Royals.

“The early stages were hard,” Ramos said. “That’s precisely what I value most of what my mother and grandfather did. There were hard times. There was one year I stopped playing baseball because we really didn’t have enough money for me to play.

“But my mom insisted, and thanks to that I was able to play and also open doors so that my brothers David and Natanael could also play baseball.”

Trading Places

The Phillies catcher has had a strong 2018 campaign at the plate. Entering action on Sept. 22, Ramos’ combined stats from his time with Tampa and Philadelphia include a .316/.366/.501 slashline with 15 home runs and 68 RBI.

In the midst of his strong showing, he laments suffering an injury during part of the campaign. He was excited to have been in the middle of a postseason race.

“I was greatly pleased with having been selected for my second All-Star Game and to feel once again the warmth of the Washington fans who chanted my name. But at the same time I felt bad that I could not play,” Ramos said.

The change of scenery had prompted hopes of playing meaningful games into late September. Ironically, the Rays’ record improved to the point they got into contention while the Phillies faltered.

Ramos realized that the trade from Tampa meant he would be unable to repay the Rays for the confidence they had in his abilities and recovery after they had signed him as a free agent in December 2016 even though he had suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury.

“I owe them a lot, mainly the fact of believing in me, especially at a time as difficult as the recovery from injury that I had suffered,” he said. “Fortunately I was able to recover and help them.”

The leadership that Ramos has exhibited extends beyond his own team. Young players on other teams have also benefited from his leadership and example. Contreras counts himself among them.

“Wilson is a great catcher that I admire,” Contreras said. “He is one of the best players in the position and an example for those working their way up to the big leagues.”

A Different Postseason

The duality that has marked Ramos’ season has been manifested not only in his strong offensive season and his injuries, but also in the manner that he has lived the last month of this campaign compared to his future after this season.

The Phillies had hoped that their trade for Ramos would have put them in prime position for a postseason berth. The prospect of playing in the postseason had excited the Venezuelan catcher.

“I’ve only been in one postseason in the big leagues,” he said. “But from my experience in Venezuela I know what it’s like to be in a fight for a spot at the end of the season.”

Ramos will be a free agent at the end of this season. This is a different circumstance than two years ago when the Rays signed him even though he was still in recovery from a torn ACL. But he realizes that he had an important role to perform on the Phillies club.

“It’s challenging knowing that I will be a free agent,” he said. “It is inevitable not to think about it because I have to find a way to ensure the future of my family.

“But I also know that the most important thing is to support my teammates by sharing my experience since Asdrubal Cabrera and I have already gone through similar situations and many of the young players are potentially going to see postseason action not only in this season but also in future seasons.”

Featured Image: Rich Schultz / Getty Images Sport