Yankees Refuse to Panic on Heliot Ramos After Brutal Start
Yankees’ New Guy Heliot Ramos Is Struggling, But the Numbers Say He’s Just Unlucky
The Big Picture
Imagine you just joined a new baseball team. You want to impress everyone, so you try extra hard. But somehow, every time you hit the ball really well, someone catches it. That’s basically what’s happening to Heliot Ramos right now.
The Yankees got Ramos from the San Francisco Giants right before the trade deadline (that’s the last day teams can trade players). They gave up two young prospects named Henry Lalane and Kaeden Kent to get him.
Since joining the team on August 4th, Ramos has been put in a very important spot in the batting order — usually 3rd or 4th. That’s where you put your best hitters. But his stats don’t look good at all…
The "Ugly" Stats (Don’t Panic Yet!)
IMPORTANT POINT:
Traditional stats can lie sometimes. They only tell you what happened, not how well you actually played.
Here’s what the basic scoreboard says about Ramos in his first 12 games as a Yankee:
| Stat | What It Means | Ramos’ Number |
|---|---|---|
| Batting Average | Hits ÷ At-bats | .077 (3 hits in 39 tries) |
| OPS | On-base + Slugging (overall hitting score) | .371 (really low) |
| Recent Game (Tuesday) | 0-for-3, 2 strikeouts, 1 walk | Not great |
In regular words: He’s only gotten 3 hits in almost 40 trips to the plate. That looks terrible.
The "Secret" Stats (Here’s the Good News)
Baseball nerds (the good kind!) use special cameras and radar to track how hard and where you hit the ball. This gives us Expected Stats — what should have happened based on the quality of your contact.
KEY INSIGHT:
Ramos has been hitting the ball well — it’s just been caught.
Check out this mind-blowing comparison since August 4th:
| Stat | What It Measures | Ramos’ Number | MLB Rank (min. 40 plate appearances) |
|---|---|---|---|
| wOBA | Actual results (what happened) | .178 | Near the bottom |
| xwOBA | Expected results (quality of contact) | .299 | Above average! |
| Difference | Luck gap | .121 | 2nd BIGGEST in MLB |
Only one player in all of baseball has had worse "luck" than Ramos: Moisés Ballesteros of the Angels (.125 gap).
Translation: Ramos has hit the ball like a good hitter, but the results say terrible hitter. The gap is huge.
What the Manager Says
Yankees manager Aaron Boone isn’t worried. Here’s what he told reporters:
"I think there’s a level of, ‘He wants to show us,’ but we know we got a good player here and a good hitter… He’s fit in very well here. I think you just want to prove yourself, so there’s probably a little bit of that going on."
Boone also pointed out two important things:
- Ramos isn’t chasing bad pitches — He’s not swinging at garbage out of the strike zone. He’s being patient.
- He’s hit into "tough luck" — Boone has said this multiple times. The numbers back him up.
The Platoon Problem (Why He’s Facing Tough Pitchers)
VOCAB ALERT:
Platoon = A player who mostly plays against one type of pitcher (lefty vs righty).
Ramos is a right-handed hitter who crushes LEFT-handed pitchers.
But since joining the Yankees… he’s faced a ton of RIGHT-handed pitchers.
Why? Because the Yankees are injury-riddled. Their best hitters are hurt:
- Aaron Judge (calf)
- Giancarlo Stanton (ribs)
- Cody Bellinger (ribs)
With those three out, Ramos has to play every day against righties — which isn’t his strength.
Good news: Boone says all three stars are expected back before the season ends. Then Ramos can go back to his ideal role: mashing lefties.
Minor League Shuffle: The Bethancourt Trade
While the main trade deadline passed, teams can still trade minor leaguers not on the 40-man roster.
What Happened:
- July 28: Yankees sign veteran catcher Christian Bethancourt to a minor league deal (insurance depth).
- Plan: If they traded for a big-league catcher, they’d cut backup Ali Sánchez (who can’t be sent to minors).
- Reality: They didn’t trade for a catcher.
- August 7: They sign another veteran catcher, Mitch Garver, to a minor league deal.
- Wednesday: They trade Bethancourt to the Pirates for cash.
Current Catching Depth (Triple-A):
- Mitch Garver (veteran, former All-Star)
- J.C. Escarra (veteran)
Bottom line: Yankees still have experienced catching insurance in the minors.
Summary: What You Need to Know
| Topic | TL;DR |
|---|---|
| Heliot Ramos | New Yankee, acquired at deadline, hitting 3rd/4th |
| Surface Stats | Awful (.077 AVG, .371 OPS in 12 games) |
| Advanced Stats | Elite contact quality (xwOBA .299) — 2nd unluckiest in MLB |
| Manager’s Take | Not worried. Says Ramos is pressing but not chasing. Calls it "tough luck." |
| Real Issue | Forced to face righties (his weak side) due to injuries |
| Light at End of Tunnel | Judge, Stanton, Bellinger returning soon → Ramos back to platoon vs lefties |
| Side Note | Yankees shuffled minor league catchers (Bethancourt out, Garver/Escarra in) |
FAQ: Your Questions Answered
Q: What is wOBA and xwOBA? I’ve never heard of them.
A: Think of wOBA as a "super batting average" that counts walks, singles, doubles, etc. properly. xwOBA is the expected version — it uses exit velocity and launch angle to say "this hit should have been a double." If xwOBA >> wOBA, you’re hitting the ball hard but getting unlucky.
Q: Why is Ramos batting 3rd or 4th if he’s 3-for-39?
A: Two reasons: (1) The Yankees are desperate with Judge/Stanton/Bellinger hurt. (2) Boone trusts the underlying numbers — he knows Ramos is hitting the ball well. Managers often trust "expected stats" over small-sample results.
Q: What’s a "platoon player"? Is that bad?
A: Not bad at all! A platoon player specializes against one pitcher handedness. Ramos destroys lefties. Many valuable MLB players are platoon guys. The problem is he’s not in that role right now due to injuries.
Q: Who are Henry Lalane and Kaeden Kent?
A: They were prospects (young players in the minor leagues) the Yankees gave to the Giants to get Ramos. Think of them as "lottery tickets" — maybe they become stars, maybe not. The Yankees bet on Ramos now instead of maybe later.
Q: Should I be worried about the Yankees’ offense?
A: Short term? Yes, it’s ugly. Long term? No. They’re missing 3 MVP-caliber hitters. Once Judge, Stanton, and Bellinger return, the lineup looks totally different. Ramos becomes a weapon off the bench vs lefties.
Final Thought
Don’t judge a book by its cover — and don’t judge a hitter by his batting average in 12 games.
Heliot Ramos has been crushing the ball but finding gloves. The Yankees know it. The numbers prove it. And when their stars come back? Watch out.