Rays' Harold Ramirez wins arbitration hearing after breakout season

First baseman/outfielder Harold Ramírez won his arbitration hearing against the Rays, reports Mark Feinsand of MLB.com. The MVP Sports Group client will make his requested $2.2M salary instead of the $1.9M figure that the club filed.

Ramírez, 28, is a native of Colombia who signed with the Pirates as an international amateur. He was traded to the Blue Jays as a minor leaguer but never made it to the big leagues with either club. He reached free agency and signed a minor league deal with the Marlins prior to the 2019 season, making his major league debut with them that year. He hit 11 home runs but was slightly below average overall, as his .276/.312/.416 batting line amounted to a 92 wRC+. He spent most of 2020 on the injured list, only getting into three games. He went to Cleveland on a waiver claim and had another passable but uninspiring season, hitting .268/.305/.398 for a wRC+ of 90.

He was traded twice in the 2021-2022 offseason, first going to the Cubs and then to the Rays. That was just before he finally had the breakout season so many clubs had been pining for. He hit .300/.343/.404 for a wRC+ of 119. The batting line isn’t terribly dissimilar from his debut, but it’s worth remembering that 2019 was the “juiced ball” season in which offense was up all around the league. Since wRC+ controls for the surrounding offensive environment, it’s much more impressed by his 2022 output, even though he hit just six home runs.

Ramírez was primarily an outfielder earlier in his career but hasn’t received especially strong grades there so far in the majors. He logged more time at first base with the Rays last year than in the outfield, 248 innings at the cold corner compared to 153 1/3 on the grass/turf. Most of his time was spent as the designated hitter, making 52 starts there on the season.

The Rays traded away one first base option when they dealt Ji-Man Choi to the Pirates. Ramírez will likely be in the mix for some time there alongside Yandy Díaz, Isaac Paredes and Jonathan Aranda, though those players can also play elsewhere on the infield. They might not have much need for Ramírez in the outfield, since they will have Manuel Margot, Randy Arozarena, Jose Siri and Josh Lowe out there, among others.

Ramírez has between three and four years of MLB service time, so he will be eligible for two more passes through the arbitration process before he’s slated to reach free agency after 2025.