Update: Former Mariner Reliever Finds New Home After Frustrating Stint
Former Seattle Mariners reliever Yohan Ramirez has latched on with the Pittsburgh Pirates, agreeing to a minor league deal on Thursday.
The 29-year-old Ramirez came up with the Mariners in the 2020 season and stayed with the organization through a portion of 2022. Armed with a big fastball, Ramirez consistently struggled to locate, going 2-3 with a 3.97 ERA in 48 games for the M’s. He walked 38 batters and hit nine more in 56.2 innings with the M’s, but he did have 71 strikeouts. In addition to his fastball, he also features a good slider.
Unfortunately, the M’s weren’t able to fully unlock him in the way that they did guys like Justin Topa, Drew Steckenrider, Matt Brash, Paul Sewald and Casey Sadler and Ramirez has bounced around quite a bit since leaving Seattle.
He has already appeared 48 games for the Pirates in his career but has also pitched for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Cleveland Guardians, Boston Red Sox, Baltimore Orioles, New York Mets and Chicago White Sox. Lifetime, he’s 6-9 with a 4.58 ERA.
Given his age and his big fastball, it’s not surprising to see Ramirez get another chance, especially with a Pirates organization that knows him so well already. But given the minor league nature of his deal, he’ll have to prove himself in order to make the roster out of spring training.
Furthermore, since it’s the outset of the offseason, there’s a chance that Ramirez doesn’t stick in the organization and is forced to re-shuffle again.
