CLEVELAND -- One of the clearest examples of what José Ramírez means to the Guardians is one the Cleveland faithful can relate to. All you had to do was take one look into the Guardians’ dugout on Friday to see it.
Ramírez belted a solo home run in the sixth inning of the Guardians’ 5-3 win over the Athletics at Progressive Field, in the opener of a three-game series. The 34-year-old reached 1,000 career RBIs with that blast, which also was No. 297 on his decorated big league résumé.
“We all looked at each other, and everyone's got a smile on their face,” second baseman Travis Bazzana said. “You love to see it. You love to see him break milestones, too, like that, especially to see the crowd stand up like that.
“He's an incredible, incredible player. When he has those good nights, everyone loves to watch it.”
Ramírez joined Earl Averill (1,084) as the only players in Cleveland franchise history to hit the RBI milestone. The home crowd gave him a loud ovation as he took his position at third base in the top of the seventh, when that achievement was displayed on the left-field videoboard.
Ramírez, who turned 34 years old on Thursday, is now just the 12th active player with 1,000 career RBIs, joining Freddie Freeman, Paul Goldschmidt, Nolan Arenado, Manny Machado, Giancarlo Stanton, Andrew McCutchen, Carlos Santana, Bryce Harper, Salvador Perez, Mike Trout and Eugenio Suárez.
“I like to use those round numbers,” manager Stephen Vogt said. “[It’s] 10 years of 100 RBIs. When you break it down that way, it's incredible what he has accomplished, and he's not even close to being done, right?”
The Guardians improved to 79-75 with their third straight win, which helped them regain first place in the American League Central, because the White Sox (78-76) lost, 11-8, to the Tigers.
Ramírez (whose towering blast went a Statcast-projected 401 feet and had a 102.4 mph exit velocity) has continued to stack up milestones in recent seasons. He became the Cleveland franchise leader in games played in April. By the end of his career, he could be the most decorated player in team history.
But Ramírez has consistently maintained one top priority, even on a night like Friday.
“Thank God for the opportunity to play here for this organization and be able to achieve [1,000 RBIs],” Ramírez said through team interpreter Agustin Rivero. “But most important is that we're able to win today, because you guys know what I really want to do here, which is win.”
Ramírez has long driven the Guardians’ winning, during the franchise’s run of sustained success over the past decade-plus. His presence has made it feel like Cleveland always has a shot. But this has been an uncharacteristic campaign for him.
Friday’s home run was Ramírez’s first since Aug. 30 and just his 12th this season. He entered the day with an uncharacteristic .683 OPS in 117 games, in an injury-impacted campaign after he missed five weeks following left hamate surgery.
Ramírez has dealt with the effects of that procedure since he came off the injured list on July 22. As he noted on Friday, it’s something he has to manage each day. It’s the type of injury that he feels good one day, and not so well the next.
“But you have to keep grinding,” Ramírez said. “I want to keep working, treat it and see how it goes. The last couple days I’ve felt better, but we know this type of injury can just vary every day.”
The past couple days and Friday, Ramírez reminded us he’s always just one swing away from impacting a game in a big way. He went 2-for-4 with a pair of doubles on Wednesday. Along with the homer on Friday, he hit a game-tying RBI single in the fourth inning.
We’re accustomed to seeing Ramírez make this game look easy. There is something to be said for how he’s carried himself in a trying season, on a roster full of young talent.
“He's such a great example of how to play the game of baseball, how to work, how to prepare yourself every day,” Vogt said. “He's still a great teammate. He's still helping us win games. Obviously, a night like tonight comes through with two huge hits.
“It's been a year for Hosey, but he's starting to ramp it up at the right time.”
Even as he manages his hand post-surgery, Ramírez is pushing for his No. 1 goal.
“The goal is to get the division and get in the playoffs and keep rolling,” Ramírez said. “I love the energy we have right now.”