I'm really excited to see how this guy works out at the BBA level. A 34-year-old minor league reliever, who has just a 45 OVR rating doesn't usually hold much weight, but let's go on a journey....
Originally from Mexico, Ramirez signed a MLC to play in the Wichita Aviators organization at 16-years-old. Not expected to be a big piece his OSA potential ratings jumped quite a bit over time:
2039: 3-2-1
2040: 3-2-2
2041: 4-2-2
2042: 7-2-5
2043: 11-2-5
2044: 14-2-5
2045: 17-3-6
He debuted on the Top 100 Prospect list in late 2043 at #58 and continued to hover in the 50's and 60's until losing his prospect status. After developing in the minor leagues as a reliever and sometimes starter, he debuted in 2044 with a decent season. But where he really took a look was in 2045, after the franchise moved to El Paso to become the Chilis. His ERA took a hit but he ended up striking out 223 batters in just 108.1 IP of relief.
He would go up and down from BBA to Triple-A over the next few years, largely because of his inability to keep the balls in the park. However, from 2048-2051, he would stay at the BBA level, with extreme highs and extreme lows. He was traded twice during that four year stretch, once to Sacramento and then on to Charlotte. It's probably easier to just look at his player page in game or stats, but I'll try my best to display just how crazy these seasons were:
2047: 7.39 ERA, -0.6 WAR
2048: 5.22 ERA, 1.6 WAR
2049: 1.54 ERA, 3.7 WAR
2050: 2.12 ERA, 3.2 WAR
2051: 8.89 ERA, -2.1 WAR
I've played this game for a long time and we have all seen some crazy swings season to season. What was particularly interesting to me Ramirez is probably coming from the fact that I wasn't in the league at the time, but I'm not seeing any "reason" for the extreme differences. OSA from 2046 to 2051 had him rated roughly the same every year. Sometimes the stuff was 18, sometimes 17. Sometimes the movement was 3, other times 4. But it went up and down, not a straight drop down.
For those same seasons, here is his HR/9 and K/9:
2047: 2.9 HR, 14.6 K
2048: 2.1 HR, 19.1 K
2049: 1.0 HR, 19.7 K
2050: 1.3 HR, 19.3 K
2051: 4.1 HR, 10.9 K
And lastly, for those seasons, WHIP:
2047: 1.39
2048: 1.15
2049: 0.67
2050: 0.76
2051: 1.92
From 2047 to 2050, he didn't have a single injury. In fact, in 2051, the only time during this stretch he was hurt, it was just day-to-day for back tightness. In 2049 and 2050, he won Reliever of the Year...and in 2051, I'd venture a guess, he was probably one of, if not the worst RP in baseball with a -2.1 WAR.
Since that last poor season, he has been relegated to minor league journeyman. He's been in multiple organizations: Portland, Chicago, Atlantic City, Phoenix, Jacksonville, and most recently here in Des Moines. Ironically, at all spots since 2051, the teams have used him as a starting pitcher in the minors. While previously, the most starts he ever had in a single season was six, dating back to 2042 when he was a 20-year-old in Rookie ball. He did succeed however:
2052: (AAA) 1.1 WAR
2053: (AAA) 1.1 WAR
2054: (A) 2.9 WAR
2055: (AAA) 1.3 WAR
I believe some have attributed his 2054 season as one of the main reasons the BBA added the age limits to the minors. That season, at 32-years-old, Ramirez pitched a no-hitter.
Fast forward to this off-season. Ramirez signed with the Kernels in March, to a minor league deal. While his OVR rating has dropped over the years, from 75 to 70 to 60 to 55 to 50 to a now 45, his pitching ratings still looked really good to me. The OSA scouting report says he is a long man at best. But he has been really, really good:
28 G, 5-2, 15 saves, 1.62 ERA, 0.81 WHIP, 1.1 HR/9, 14.3 K/9 - 1.3 WAR
He's getting the call for tomorrow's sim. My bullpen ranks 32nd on the positional strength and we are 26th in the entire league for pitching strikeouts. He joins a group that besides closer Garth Dobbs (75 POT), isn't really anything to write home about. In terms of his player profile, he hits 101 MPH on the gun, throws five pitches, two of which are plus-plus. His 11 knuckle curve is tied for the highest rated KC in the entire BBA universe. His 11 slider is T-4th behind three players who have theirs rated 12.
I'm obviously rooting for him as he plays on my team as we make our playoff push. But I think I have an even bigger interest as an OOTP junkie and now BBA historian. He's obviously going to give up his fair share of homeruns and maybe he just throws mop-up. If he struggles long enough, without option years, he might hit waivers and someone else will give him a chance.
But what if he's good?
