At this point, Cleveland Guardians fans are used to being carried by superstar third baseman Jose Ramirez. He is not just a franchise legend; he was among the very best players in the league for almost a decade, from 2016 to 2025.
Ramirez has four top-three AL MVP finishes, including once as recently as 2025, and eight top-ten finishes. When everything is said and done, he’ll be a legitimate Hall of Fame candidate.
Things in 2026, however, have been complicated for the star infielder. He opened the season a bit off his usual pace and went down on June 13 with a season-altering hamate bone injury that required surgery and five weeks of rest and rehab.
His 110 wRC+ prior to the procedure was solid, but not quite his best work, which led some people to suggest his natural aging process was already upon us. Then, after returning from the surgery, his stats really tanked, and he finished with a .235/.320/.368 line and a 92 wRC+, marking the first year he posted a below-average wRC+ since 2015.
He showed some signs of life late in the season, but Ramirez was far from the most impactful player on the Guardians this year. That hadn’t happened for a while.
Normally, one would expect the Guardians of previous seasons to crumble if Ramirez experienced something similar to what he had to go through in 2026. However, the organization’s young core has blossomed into one of the best in the league, which is why Cleveland was able to win a third straight AL Central title.
“Cleveland Guardians made the playoffs & won the AL Central with Jose Ramirez having the 8th-best f(WAR) on the team: Parker Messick 4.8, Steven Kwan 3.8, Brayan Rocchio 3.6, Chase DeLauter 3.5, Gavin Williams 3.5, Travis Bazzana 2.8, Cade Smith 2.6, Jose Ramirez 2.3,” Guardians Prospective posted.
Cleveland #Guardians made the playoffs & won the AL Central with Jose Ramirez having the 8th best f(WAR) on the team. 🤯
Parker Messick 4.8
Steven Kwan 3.8
Brayan Rocchio 3.6
Chase DeLauter 3.5
Gavin Williams 3.5
Travis Bazzana 2.8
Cade Smith 2.6
Jose Ramirez 2.3#GuardsBall— Guardians Prospective (@CleGuardPro) September 27, 2026
Consider that some of these breakout players are rookies. That’s the case of Bazzana, DeLauter, and Messick. Additionally, all of them, except Ramirez, are under 30, and most of them are under 25.
For years, we all wondered what would the Guardians do when J-Ram started showing signs of his age. We finally got the answer: they can still be a quality squad because the emerging pieces are talented and exciting.
NEXT: Parker Messick’s Historic Season Puts Him In Elite MLB Company
