While Shohei Ohtani was chasing, and setting, history last year, José Ramírez was close to making history himself.
Ramírez was chasing a 40-home run, 40-double, 40 stolen-base season. He would’ve been just the second player to have such a season (Alfonso Soriano, 2006) in Major League Baseball history. But mother nature got in the way.
Game 162 between the Cleveland Guardians and Houston Astros was cancelled. The game didn’t mean anything in the standings. Both clubs were heading for the playoffs. So the game was called. Ramírez was denied a shot at history. He finished the year with 39 homers, 39 doubles, and 41 stolen bases.
The third baseman finished 2024 with a .279 average, .872 OPS, and 143 OPS+. His 6.8 WAR was ninth in the majors among position players, per Baseball-Reference. Ramírez’s home run total was fifth. His doubles ranked sixth. His steals were fifth.
It was yet another great season authored by Ramírez, who during his 12-year career, has become one of baseball’s top players. And perhaps, among fans, an underappreciated player.
Where he ranks
Since debuting with Cleveland in 2013 at 20 years old, Ramírez has been nothing but a star. Dating back to the start of 2013 — Ramírez debuted on September 1 of that year — he ranks seventh among non-pitchers in MLB with 52.4 WAR.
| Player | WAR since start of 2013 |
| Mike Trout | 75.2 |
| Mookie Betts | 69.6 |
| Paul Goldschmidt | 59.0 |
| Freddie Freeman | 57 |
| Nolan Arenado | 56.7 |
| Manny Machado | 56.2 |
| José Ramírez | 52.4 |
On top of that, Ramírez leads third basemen with a 130 OPS+ since the start of 2013.
For his career, Ramírez has totaled 1,500 hits, 364 doubles, 255 home runs, 243 steals, 2,709 total bases, and 898 runs. He’s the only player since the beginning of 2013 — again, he only appeared in 15 games that season — to tally at least 350 doubles, 250 home runs, and 240 steals. Ramírez is one-of-one.
Ramírez being top-10 in WAR among position players for over a 12-season stretch highlights his potential to one day be elected to the Hall of Fame. The six players above him will all have their own Hall cases in the future. So will some of the ones below him, like Aaron Judge, Jose Altuve, Francisco Lindor, and Bryce Harper.
Ramírez and the path to Cooperstown
Ramírez has been a top-10 player for more than a decade. And that’s a great place to start for someone’s potential Cooperstown candidacy.
But how does he compare to other Hall of Fame third basemen?
Pretty well.
| Player | WAR between debut and end of 12th season | OPS+ between debut and end of 12th season |
| Adrian Beltré | 44.6 | 105 |
| Scott Rolen | 55.1 | 126 |
| Chipper Jones | 56.8 | 140 |
| José Ramírez | 52.4 | 130 |
Ramírez is in the neighborhood of some of baseball’s best third basemen ever.
Beltré’s career picked up over his final nine seasons. Between 2010 and 2018, Beltré posted a 48.9 WAR and 130 OPS+. He was a four-time All-Star during that period, winning three Silver Slugger Awards and three Gold Gloves. In total, Beltré won four Silver Sluggers and five Gold Gloves, compiling a 93.5 WAR over his 21-year career.
Rolen finished his career with a 70.1 WAR and 122 OPS+ over 17 seasons. He won NL Rookie of the Year in 1997. Rolen is also an eight-time Gold Glove Award winner.
Jones ended his illustrious 19-year career with an 85.3 WAR, 141 OPS+, two Silver Sluggers, and led the majors in batting average (.364) and on-base percentage (.470) during his age-36 season in 2008.
Right now, Ramírez is a six-time All-Star and five-time Silver Slugger winner. He’s finished inside the top-10 of AL MVP voting seven times, finishing second once (2020) and third twice (2017 and 2018).
Again, he’s not a lock for the Hall if his career ended today. But Ramírez is on his way.
In terms of WAR, Ramírez’s JAWS (48.2) is lower than that of the average third baseman in the Hall (56.1). But entering his age-32 season, there’s room for that to improve. There’s also time for his career WAR to grow.
The average WAR for a third baseman in the Hall of Fame is 68.9, and with a good three-year stretch, Ramírez could surpass that. Per 162 games, he’s averaging 5.8 WAR entering 2025. At that pace, by the end of 2027, Ramírez would be at 69.8 WAR.
Ramírez is also averaging 28 home runs, 41 doubles, and 27 stolen bases for every 162 games he plays. If he maintains those averages for about 2.5 more seasons, he’d join an exclusive list of players — those to compile at least 300 home runs, 450 doubles, and 300 stolen bases.
There are only five players in the 300-homer, 450-double, 300-stolen base club: Barry Bonds, Willie Mays, Alex Rodriguez, Carlos Beltrán, and Andre Dawson.
Bonds and Rodriguez won’t ever be in the Hall, although some think they should be. Beltrán isn’t in, but it’s looking like he’ll get in at some point, maybe as soon as 2026. Mays and Dawson are Hall of Famers.
Even if Ramírez’s averages dip in the years to come, it’s still reasonable to think that he could reach about 70 WAR along with 300 homers, 450 doubles, and 300 steals by the end of his career. Again, he’s only entering his age-32 season.
Reaching those totals would give Ramírez a great case for Cooperstown. He’d be one of the best players of his time. He’d be one of the best third basemen of all time. And he’d be on a list with five of the best baseball players ever.
Moving forward
Ramírez will likely remain a bit underappreciated moving forward. Playing in a smaller market like Cleveland doesn’t allow him to shine bright in the news cycle like he would if he played somewhere with a larger media presence.
His lack of extreme recognition isn’t his fault, though. He’s a great player. Those who follow the game closely know it. Those who don’t may not.
So, if you’re one of those who doesn’t follow the game closely, remember to appreciate Ramírez this year. He’s special.
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