2014 Dodgers review: Hanley Ramirez
On the day after decisions on qualifying offers were officially mad, here is a look back at the 2014 season and likely the Dodgers career of shortstop Hanley Ramirez, a key component of two division winners in Los Angeles and one of the best hitters the franchise has ever seen.
What went right
Ramirez wasn't at a Hall of Fame level in 2014 like he was in 2013, but he was still a very productive player. He hit .283/.369/.448 with 13 home runs and 35 doubles, with a 132 OPS+ and 135 wRC+ that both ranked second among major league shortstops with at least 300 plate appearances.
But forget just 'for a shortstop.' Ramirez was a productive hitter, period. His 135 wRC+ ranked 30th in baseball among the 263 major league hitters with 300 PA.
Ramirez didn't hit a home run in September, but he did hit .325/.425/.451 during the season's final month, including .417/.493/.533 over his final 19 games. That carried over into the NLDS, when Ramirez was 6-for-14 (.429) with a double and a walk in four games against St. Louis.
Ramirez was only with the Dodgers for 278 games over just under 2½ seasons, but ranks third all-time in franchise history with 41 home runs as a shortstop, and only two behind Rafael Furcal as most since moving to Los Angeles in 1958.
With his 145 OPS+ in Los Angeles, Ramirez is tied for eighth among Dodgers all-time with at least 1,000 plate appearances.
What went wrong
While Ramirez didn't suffer the injuries that limited him to only 86 games in 2013, his season in 2014 was more a constant, nagging cluster of injuries that had to be managed all season. The one injury that did require a disabled list stint was a right oblique strain that caused him to miss 14 games in August.
On defense, Ramirez at shortstop regressed from passable in 2013 to terrible in 2014, more in line with his final three years in Miami. Ramirez was nine runs below average in defensive runs saved, 12 runs below average in total zone rating, and 10 runs below average in ultimate zone rating.
Ramirez made a throwing error on a ground ball to open the seventh inning on June 18 against the Rockies, allowing Chris Dickerson to reach base, the only man to reach base in Clayton Kershaw 's perfect game no-hitter.
The Dodgers routinely replaced Ramirez on defense with a lead in the final innings at shortstop, and he completed only 65 of the 115 games he started at the position. By contrast, Ramirez in 2013 only started 75 games at shortstop, but completed 61 of them.
2014 particulars
Age: 30
Salary: $16 million
Game of the year
Ramirez went 4-for-4 with two home runs and five RBI in only six innings against the Pirates on May 31, but my choice for the game of the year for Ramirez is Aug. 2 against the Cubs. Ramirez was 3-for-5 with a walk and a double, and hit a walk-off three-run home run in the 12th inning, the first walk-off home run of his career.
Roster status
Ramirez is now a free agent, having declined the Dodgers' qualifying offer of one year, $15.3 million. Should Ramirez sign elsewhere, the Dodgers will receive a supplemental draft pick between the first and second rounds in 2015.
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