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Jose Ramirez 2019 Outlook - Cleveland Bash Brother A Consensus Top-Five Pick
6 years agoAfter a surprise breakout campaign in 2017, very few, if any fantasy players were expecting Cleveland Indians third baseman Jose Ramirez to take it to an even higher level in 2018. The 26-year-old’s encore performance consisted of career-highs in Runs (110), HR (39), RBI (105), and SB (34) en route to a top-five fantasy ranking. This newfound power came at the expense of his batting average, however, as he set his sights on the bleachers. Ramirez became a top-10 fly-ball hitter with the second-highest pull rate in the majors, and it dragged his BABIP down over 60 points from 2017. Points league managers aren’t complaining though because he has become a fantasy points jackpot thanks to the highest BB/K ratio and HR+SB total in all the land. The only thing that Ramirez has going against him in 2019 is the departures of Edwin Encarnacion, Yonder Alonso, and Michael Brantley this offseason. The lineup currently slated behind him looks rather bleak, and the possible effect on the Run scoring opportunities widens the gap between JRam and the Mookie Betts - Mike Trout tier.
