José Ramírez is so often considered one of the most “underrated players” in the game, that I actually think he’s finally overrated … just kidding. He’s insanely good. And has been forever. And yet, he still finds way to impress us.
Take this afternoon, for example, when he scored … on a straight steal of home … with two outs and two strikes … in extra innings … of a tie ballgame. I mean this is just some serious LEGEND stuff right here.
And I love the announcer’s call, it reminds me of Benny “The Jet” Rodriguez stealing home in The Sandlot: “Ramírez inching down the line …he’s GONNA TRY TO STEAL HOME! AH!
The umpire called José Ramírez out initially (spoiling what would’ve been an even better call/highlight/memory), but the play was overturned upon review. Correctly, I might add. Though I give the ump some grace, because this slide was truly unreal:
Good GOD that takes guts, even against a pitcher like Aroldis Chapman, who is not only a lefty, but also has an incredibly closed windup with his back to the bag.
But again, even setting aside the courage to do that in extra innings of a tie game, the actual execution of the slide is just phenomenal. José Ramírez really is that guy. And in case you’ve been tuned out, yes, he’s having another monster season: .298/.367/.525 (137 wRC+); 13 HRs, 52 RBI and 3.2 WAR before the All-Star break.
But just like the initial out call ruined the highlight, the outcome of the game ruins the fun: The Royals rallied back to score two runs in the bottom of the 10th inning to win the game. Still an amazing play.
