CLEVELAND -- Manager Stephen Vogt said José Ramírez is doing better, but the star third baseman was out of the Guardians’ starting lineup for a second straight game on Wednesday due to left wrist inflammation.
“He’s feeling much better today,” Vogt said before the Guardians’ game against the Mets on Wednesday. “He's going to need another day, but he’s definitely progressing really, really well.”
When Ramírez made his return from left hamate surgery last month, Vogt said the Guardians would be thoughtful about how much the 33-year-old plays and when. The past two days are in line with that, and Ramírez is considered day to day. He hit it in the cage Wednesday to test his wrist, before he took pregame ground balls alongside Genao at third.
Ramírez bypassed a rehab assignment en route to coming off the injured list on July 22. He came back five weeks and one day after his June 16 surgery, for which he was given a five-to-seven weeks return timeline. The Guardians followed Ramírez’s lead as he went through his progression. He knows his body well at this point in his career. When he felt he was ready to play, he did.
Ramírez played in 10 of Cleveland’s 11 games after he came off the IL. He felt sore following the Guardians’ series finale against the D-backs on Sunday, with Vogt noting the issue bothers him mostly at the plate.
“We know Hosey posts, and he played eight out of nine days coming into the off-day,” Vogt said Wednesday. “He just came out of that last game on Sunday feeling really sore, so we gave him a day yesterday. He's feeling much, much better today. We just felt that one more day could help him get over the hump, and we'll evaluate where he is tomorrow."
Ramírez logged three multihit games after his IL stint, but he hit just .195 (8-for-41) with zero extra-base hits, five walks, two strikeouts and three stolen bases.
Ramírez has a .233/.331/.388 slash line in 82 games this season. His .719 OPS would be his lowest since 2015 (.631).