The Guardians are getting closer to having Jose Ramirez back, but the timeline still isn’t locked in.
Manager Stephen Vogt said Ramirez will have a big say in when he returns after hamate bone surgery, and Cleveland may not even need to send him out on a rehab assignment before activating him. For now, the focus is on how the third baseman feels, how he looks and whether his timing is where it needs to be.
“He’s going to drive a lot of this just because he knows himself. He’s been working hard.
We’re not 100 percent sure he’ll need to go out [for a rehab assignment]. He’s going to know what he needs when he feels like he’s ready to go play,” Vogt said.
“We know that we have a progression for him to build up to a certain amount of games and innings. But at the same time, it’s, ‘How’s he feeling?
How’s he looking? How’s the rhythm of the game?’”
Ramirez, Angel Martinez and Chase DeLauter were all hurt in the same game on June 13, and the Guardians have already started to get pieces back. DeLauter returned to Cleveland’s outfield late last month and has stayed hot since rejoining the lineup.
Martinez has also moved forward in his recovery from a foot injury. He logged two plate appearances for Columbus on Friday before that game was suspended in the fourth inning because of poor air quality and rain. The plan is for him to continue with another series for Double-A Akron, keeping him closer to Cleveland when he’s ready for the majors.
Ramirez was initially given a 6-8-week recovery window after surgery, and Saturday will mark five weeks since the injury. That puts him on schedule, with a possible target of Friday, July 31, when the Guardians open a home series against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
There is still some uncertainty about what Ramirez will bring when he comes back. Hamate injuries can take some pop out of a hitter’s bat, and power was already an issue for him this season, with just 10 home runs in his first 72 games.
Still, there’s recent evidence that he can bounce back quickly from this kind of setback. In 2019, after returning from a similar injury to his other hand in just four weeks, Ramirez launched two home runs in his first game back.
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