May 29, 2018

Rookie of the Year: Hanley Ramirez, 2006

Shortstop, Florida Marlins



Age:  22
Bats – Right, Throws – Right
Height: 6’2”    Weight: 235

Prior to 2006:
A native of Samana in the Dominican Republic, Ramirez displayed strong batting and throwing skills from a young age and he signed with the Boston Red Sox for $55,000 in 2000. The budding shortstop hit over .400 with Boston’s Dominican Summer League club at age 17 in 2001. He spent 2002 with the Gulf Coast League’s Red Sox where he hit .341 with 6 home runs in 45 games and moved on to the Lowell Spinners of the Class A New York-Pennsylvania League where he batted .371 in 22 games. A strong season in 2003 with the Class A Augusta GreenJackets was followed by stints with Sarasota and the Class AA Portland Sea Dogs in 2004. With Portland again in ’05, Ramirez hit .271 with 6 home runs and 52 RBIs and saw some action at second base. He got called up to the Red Sox in September and struck out twice in two at bats. In the offseason he was traded to the Marlins along with two other prospects for RHP Josh Beckett and third baseman Mike Lowell. Following a strong spring he won the starting shortstop job for his new team for 2006.

2006 Season Summary
Appeared in 158 games
SS – 154, PR – 3, PH – 2

[Bracketed numbers indicate NL rank in Top 20]

Batting
Plate Appearances – 700 [10]
At Bats – 633 [8]
Runs – 119 [5, tied with Alfonso Soriano, Matt Holliday & Albert Pujols]
Hits – 185 [10]
Doubles – 46 [7, tied with Nick Johnson]
Triples – 11 [6]
Home Runs – 17
RBI – 59
Bases on Balls – 56
Int. BB – 0
Strikeouts – 128 [13, tied with Adam LaRoche]
Stolen Bases – 51 [3]
Caught Stealing – 15 [4]
Average - .292
OBP - .353
Slugging Pct. - .480
Total Bases – 304 [13]
GDP – 7
HBP – 4
Sac Hits – 5
Sac Flies – 2


Midseason snapshot: HR – 13, RBI – 46, AVG. - .278, SLG PCT - .477

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Most hits, game – 4 (in 5 AB) at Houston 4/4, (in 5 AB) at Milwaukee 9/3
Longest hitting streak – 11 games
Most HR, game – 2 (in 6 AB) at Cincinnati 4/18, (in 4 AB) vs. Cincinnati 9/27
HR at home – 9
HR on road – 8
Multi-HR games – 2
Most RBIs, game – 4 at Cincinnati 4/18
Pinch-hitting/running – 1 of 1 (1.000) with 2 SB, 2 R & 1 RBI

Fielding
Chances - 695
Put Outs – 258
Assists – 411
Errors – 26
DP - 111
Pct. - .963

Awards & Honors:
NL Rookie of the Year: BBWAA

NL ROY Voting (Top 5):
Hanley Ramirez, Fla.: 105 pts. – 14 of 32 first place votes, 66% share
Ryan Zimmerman, Wash.: 101 pts. – 10 first place votes, 63% share
Dan Uggla, Fla.: 55 pts. – 6 first place votes, 34% share
Josh Johnson, Fla.: 11 pts. – 2 first place votes, 7% share
Matt Cain, SF.: 4 pts. – 3% share
Andre Ethier, LAD: 4 pts. – 3% share

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Marlins went 78-84 to finish fourth in the NL Eastern Division. The season was highlighted by the performances of rookie stars Ramirez, 2B Dan Uggla, and RHP Josh Johnson.

Aftermath of ‘06:
Ramirez followed up in 2007 with another strong season as he hit .332 with 29 home runs and 81 RBIs along with 51 stolen bases. He had his first All-Star Game appearance in 2008 on his way to scoring a league-leading 125 runs and hitting .301 with 33 home runs and 67 RBIs. Ramirez signed a six-year contract extension worth $70 million and won the NL batting title in 2009 with a .342 average. He was an All-Star for the third consecutive year in 2010, although, while he hit .300, his extra base hit and RBI totals dropped as he was troubled by a sore elbow and shoulder throughout the season. Shoulder problems continued to be an issue in 2011 as Ramirez appeared in only 92 games and batted .243. Following off-season surgery and the arrival of free agent shortstop Jose Reyes, Ramirez, who was never quite as impressive defensively as anticipated, was shifted to third base in 2012 and was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers in July where he shifted between third and shortstop. His numbers improved slightly in LA and he batted .257 for the year with 24 home runs and 92 RBIs.  In 2013 he played in only 86 games due to thumb and hamstring injuries and was outstanding at the bat when active, hitting .345 with 20 home runs and 57 RBIs. While there was some decline in 2014 Ramirez hit .283 and knocked in 71 runs while playing in 128 games. He returned to his original team, the Red Sox, as a free agent in 2015. He was shifted to left field, where his defense was deficient, although he hit 19 home runs and batted .249 in 105 games.  Ramirez was moved to first base in 2016, with better results in the field as well as at bat, where he hit .286 with 30 home runs and 111 RBIs. Following a lesser year in 2017, when he was used more often as a designated hitter, and off to a slow start in 2018, his time with the Red Sox came to an end. Overall, up until the point that he was designated for assignment in May after appearing in 44 games with Boston in 2018, Ramirez had a career .290 batting average with 1825 hits, including 269 home runs. He has driven in 909 runs and stolen 281 bases, although his base stealing has dropped off significantly since 2012. 148 home runs, 482 RBIs and 230 stolen bases occurred while playing for the Marlins, where he batted .300 and was a three-time All-Star. 

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Rookie of the Year Profiles feature players who were recipients of the Rookie of the Year Award by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America (1947 to present). The award was presented to a single major league winner from its inception through 1948 and from 1949 on to one recipient from each major league. 

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