Padres fill massive hole, sign shortstop Alexei Ramirez
After a flurry of moves last offseason, the San Diego Padres have remained relatively quiet this time around. Though their offseason hasn’t been as active, the club found a way to address its biggest need Thursday, signing shortstop Alexei Ramirez, according to Jon Heyman.
Ramirez is coming off his worst year in the majors, but still represents a massive upgrade for San Diego. The 34-year-old hit just .249/.285/.357, with 10 home runs, over 622 plate appearances. Ramirez, who has always graded out as a special defender at short, saw some of his skills erode in that area as well last year.
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The fact that Ramirez is considered an upgrade says a lot about both the state of the shortstop position and the Padres’ massive need to fill that hole. The depth chart on the team’s website, which is not official, currently lists Alexi Amarista as the team’s starter at short. Even if Ramirez struggles with the bat, he should be an upgrade over Amarista.
On top of that, the bar for offensive usefulness at the shortstop position is incredibly low right now. Shortstops combined to hit .256/.307/.375 last year, according to FanGraphs. Ramirez was slightly worse in every category, but was also coming off a terrible season. If he can make minor improvements, he should hit like an average shortstop, and has the potential to be above average if 2015 was a statistical blip.
That improvement isn’t guaranteed, especially considering Ramirez’s age, but it is worth noting he was much better in the second half. Ramirez hit .277/.325/.432 over that period, and while that’s not a big sample, it’s far more promising than his first half numbers.
Even if Ramirez continues to decline, it’s tough to see this move really hurting the Padres. By signing him for just one season, the club has made it clear he’s a stopgap. Ramirez will have a chance to rebuild his value while the club develops their shortstop of the future in the minors.
It’s not like the club is expected to contend next year anyway. The team’s biggest moves this offseason have involved dealing Craig Kimbrel and Joaquin Benoit. FanGraphs currently projects the team to win 74 games next year. This isn’t a club with serious World Series aspirations, it’s a club looking to get through another season while the next batch of Padres grow in the minors.
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One-year deals are never franchise killers. Ramirez isn’t the type of player fans will get excited about. But he will help the Padres next season. Considering the current state of the franchise, that will be good enough.
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Chris Cwik is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Chris_Cwik
