If you followed the Cleveland Guardians in the 2010s, Chris Gimenez is not an unfamiliar name to you. The catcher, drafted by the team in 2004, had MLB stints in the organization in 2009-10, then in 2014, and then in 2016.
He shared the same clubhouse with Guardians legend Jose Ramirez and got to see his greatness from up close. J-Ram is not the most outgoing player, but he sure is talented. Fans in Cleveland idolize the third baseman, not just because of his obvious skills on the field, but also because he chose to stay and be the leader of a project over the long haul. For that, his colleagues idolize him, too.
That’s what makes him such a big and prominent figure in Cleveland, according to Gimenez: he wanted to be in Cleveland.
“I’ve been here long enough to know you’re beloved if you just want to stay here; this place wants that guy so bad,” Gimenez said.
"I've been here long enough to know you're beloved if you just want to stay here, this place wants that guy so bad"@ChrisGimenez5 praises the hall of fame career of Jose Ramírez in Cleveland, plus throws a BRUTAL stray at LeBron along the way pic.twitter.com/lWStnqH9sC
— The Daily Guards (@DailyGuards) April 18, 2026
Most star-level players, when they reach free agency or even, in some cases, before that point, want to leave for one of the big-market teams. They often prioritize cities such as Los Angeles, New York, or Chicago, for obvious reasons. Ramirez, signed as an amateur free agent from the Dominican Republic in 2009 by Cleveland, chose to be loyal to the organization that gave him so much, repaying the faith they showed in him.
Ramirez has now signed multiple contracts to remain in Cleveland, and it’s safe to say that he could have gotten more elsewhere. He didn’t want that, though: he, one of the greatest third basemen of his generation, wanted to stay with the Guardians and be the leader of their project.
Gimenez was a major leaguer from 2009 until 2018. He knows how players think, how badly they want to be part of something special, and how they usually prioritize certain cities or places to play when given the chance to pick.
Evidently, he respects Ramirez for choosing to stay in Cleveland. It’s his place in the world, as he has suggested many times, and he is part of something special: an organization that has made the playoffs seven times in the last ten seasons, with two American League Championship Series and one World Series appearance.
One of these days, Ramirez, who is sporting a 121 wRC+ with four homers and 10 stolen bases in the 2026 season already, might take Cleveland to the promised land.
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