From June 14 until July 21, the Cleveland Guardians had to play without their superstar, the heart and soul of the team. Jose Ramirez, the future Hall of Fame candidate who has taken over as one of the most prominent figures in Cleveland sports in the last decade, went down with a left hamate bone fracture on June 13 and took roughly five weeks to heal and complete his return.
Even though the Guardians lost on Ramirez’s first game back on Wednesday, the superstar third baseman didn’t waste any time reminding the world why he was missed so badly. He went 2-for-5 with a run and two RBI, giving the team a spark.
The Guardians didn’t thrive without Ramirez. They weren’t supposed to. But they did survive, as manager Stephen Vogt will remind you.
“The last five weeks could have been a lot different, and it wasn’t. We kept our heads above water. You can use all the cliches you want, but we did not let the last five weeks determine the rest of our season,” Vogt said. “We had some low points. We had some high points, some in between. But really proud of what this group did over the last five weeks and we’ve got a lot of work left.”
There’s no doubt that the Guardians would have been a much better team in these past five weeks with Ramirez. Vogt prefers to have his star ready, locked, and loaded to play every day. It’s also true, however, that the rest of the squad deserves credit for keeping the organization relevant and competitive, actually in possession of a postseason spot and just one game behind the top spot in the AL Central.
Cleveland went 15-15 while Ramirez was gone. They weren’t incredibly good, and the offense certainly suffered, but they made it through the hardest part of their season in one piece and are now ready to enjoy the contributions of a truly elite hitter and player.
Ramirez alone doesn’t guarantee the Guardians will be in October, but he sure makes them a better, more dangerous squad. It’s important to point out that the rest of his teammates will be the ones in charge of raising the ceiling and determining the season’s fate.
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