Saginaw resident didn’t pass on chance at major leagues. Now, he’s in World Series.
Judging by the way the Tampa Bay Rays utilize their bullpen, using analytics to leverage matchups at seemingly any point in every game, two of the busiest people in the ballpark are their bullpen catchers.
A bullpen catcher gives instant feedback to pitchers on their stuff, and he catches all them. He has to be honest, even when it might lead to a tough conversation. He also has to be a listener, because sometimes pitchers need to clear their heads before they can perform on the field.
Those are just in-game duties. Life before games isn’t exactly a piece of cake, either.
For Saginaw resident Jean Ramirez, his route from minor-league catcher to big-league bullpen catcher has been a blessing.
Ramirez went to Boswell High School and then Illinois State before Tampa Bay selected him in the 28th round of the 2016 draft. He is half of the Rays’ bullpen-catching duo, and two years ago seized what might have been his only chance to be in the big leagues.
At 26 and single, he’s enjoying an unexpected baseball ride. At the same time, he is working and learning and waiting to see where his experiences behind the plate will take him.
They’ve taken him to the World Series at Globe Life Field, only a short drive from his home.
“It’s been, honestly, just crazy,” said Ramirez, who was born in Puerto Rico. “So much traveling, so much running around, been to different places, played in different plays, but if you had asked me two or three years ago if I was going to be here, I would have said, ‘Absolutely not.’”
The Rays won Game 4 on Saturday in a crazy manner to tie the 116th Fall Classic with the Los Angeles Dodgers. Game 5 was Sunday night in what has become a best-of-three series to decide the world champion.
Tampa Bay calls its bullpen the Stable, and went to the Stable 17 times in the first four games. Ten different pitchers appeared in relief, and no Rays starter has finished five innings.
They have made the opener a thing in baseball.
“You never know,” Ramirez said. “We have a pretty amazing analytics department. Our guys don’t miss, so we find a plan and pitch according to the plan and it works out. You use your best guys in the highest leverage situations.”
Ramirez sits in on advanced scouting meetings, catches early bullpen sessions, throws a round of batting practice and has even slapped grounders to infielders.
He has taken the deep dive on analytics, a Rays specialty. He watches and listens to pitching coach Kyle Snyder.
Pitchers covet the feedback Ramirez gives them.
“He’s really good at his job,” said left-hander Blake Snell, who is scheduled to start Tuesday in Game 6. “I know he has a lot of information about the game, and he’s smart. I like Jean personally, I like him as a bullpen catcher, I like the way he handles his business. He takes it very seriously, and that’s huge for us because he gets worn out by the Stable and the starting pitchers/Stable.
“Jean gets used a lot out there, but he loves his job and I think that’s the best part about it. He loves being here, he loves what he’s doing, and he loves that he’s helping all these guys get ready for these big moments.”
But that opportunity came only after the Rays released Ramirez following the 2018 season and days after he had moved on to a coaching job in the Cleveland Indians organization.
The Rays brought him back for one of the toughest, behind-the-scenes, no-fanfare jobs in baseball. The Rays’ other bullpen catcher is Misha Dworken.
“It’s a huge role,” said Rays manager Kevin Cash, a former MLB catcher and bullpen coach. “It’s a comforting role for the pitchers, specifically the relievers. They’re kind of out there on their own island during the game. There is a lot of conversation. Some of it is about the game. Some it can go totally sideways and not be about baseball at all.
“Jean fills that role besides working and doing everything he can to make these guys better.”
Ramirez was working as a coach with Indians minor-leaguers when the Rays called to let them know they had an opening in the big leagues, just not one as a player. After some discussions with his parents and the Indians, who didn’t stand in his way and actually helped reach the right decision, he headed back to Tampa Bay.
“At that point I was ready to get my coaching career started,” Ramirez said. “Sure enough, the Rays called me and said, ‘We have an opening in the big leagues if you want it.’”
Ramirez’s ultimate goal is to be a coach, and that’s why he voluntarily has so many irons in the Rays’ daily fire. The opportunity to learn is there, and it’s not in Ramirez’s makeup to let those chances slip away.
“I’m involved. I’m everywhere,” he said. “That’s partly on myself because I want to learn from everybody. That way I can continue to grow and continue to set more goals.
“[Coaching] is the ultimate goal. I don’t know what that will be. I’ll just let things unfold themselves. I’m not in a rush to do anything differently, but I feel like I’m in a good position.”
Yeah. Ramirez is in the World Series.
This story was originally published October 25, 2020 at 5:37 PM.
