
Catcher Wilson Ramos is part of a long list of New York Mets’ players who may need to take a step forward for the team to flourish.
Ramos’ 2019 was respectable, but certainly not elite. He was 18th in WAR among catchers with 1.4, even though he played the third most games (141) at the position.
That doesn’t mean that he didn’t have moments of brilliance. He even had a very long hitting streak. However, knowing what he can do, there is a feeling that he can definitely improve in 2020. He needs to do it, for the Mets to reach their potential and for him to secure a big payday. After all, it is his walk season, although the Mets have an option for 2021.
The Mets would like more from him
The improvements may come in several ways. For starters, he was a below-average offensive performer (-2.1 batting runs) a lousy baserunner (-5.8 base running runs) and a below-average framer (26th percentile according to Baseball Savant.)
Let’s start with his offensive production. He slashed .288/.351/.416 with 14 home runs and a 105 wRC+. Not bad for a catcher, but if your starting backstop isn’t particularly good in the defensive side of things, you want a little more offense. Considering that he hit .306 and had a 132 wRC+ the year before, the Mets know there is potential for increased production.
His baserunning probably won’t improve. He is 32, has always been slow, and was in the 4th percentile in sprint speed.
Getting defensive
What he does on defense, however, will dictate a lot of his playing time. Some Mets’ hurlers,most notably Noah Syndergaard, openly lobbied to pitch to a different battery mate instead of Ramos. He preferred Tomas Nido or Rene Rivera’s ability to call a game.
Framing isn’t his strongest attribute. In the Statcast era, starting in 2015, Ramos hasn’t been even an average framer, although he came close in 2015 and 2016. However, framing isn’t the only component for a successful defensive catcher.
It is worth noting that Ramos, at least according to Fangraphs’ fielding runs, has been a positive performer for most of his career. He’s not a disaster out there, and there is hope.
Trying to improve several facets of his game would mean a lot to the Mets. Whether Syndergaard ever feels comfortable with Ramos behind the dish remains to be seen, but as a talented, experienced major leaguer with a good and consistent offensive track record, he probably deserves the extended opportunity.