What to do with Wilson?
May 10, 2010
When Joe Mauer went down with a bruised left heel, the Twins placed Pat Neshek on the disabled list and called up Wilson Ramos from Triple-A to be their everyday catcher. Ramos made his debut with the club against the Cleveland Indians and had an impressive outing going 4-for-5 with two doubles. For an encore, Ramos went 3-for-4 against the Detroit Tigers the following night in front of the hometown crowd.
After seeing what Ramos was capable of, the masses began to ask questions about his future with the club. People began to wonder who this Mauer guy was and why he just signed an 8-year deal with the club. People also began to ask if Mauer can somehow make the transition to third base to make room for Ramos and vice versa. I mean, how can one club have this much talent behind the plate?
Since his hot start, Ramos has seen his luck change at the plate and has gone 1-for-18 with three strike outs and no walks. His average has dropped from .778 to a .296, which is still better than his average in Triple-A but more along the lines of an everyday player. With that said, though, batting .296 isn’t a bad average to have after a slump.
Slumps or not, it is plain to see that Ramos belongs behind the plate and should be an everyday player. With Mauer locked up for the foreseeable future, the question begs to be asked, what should be done with Wilson Ramos?
Even though he is 100 times the player Drew Butera is, Ramos will be the one to be sent back to Triple-A once Neshek returns from the disabled list. The reason behind this is simple – Butera is a backup catcher, Ramos is an everyday player. Although he seems to be ready, Ramos will need a little more time to develop as his time in the upper minors has been limited. From there it’s anyone’s guess.
My thoughts are that the Twins should continue to develop him in Rochester. Ramos surely caught the attention of many scouts with his impressive debut, and while he will not be as highly sought after as Joe Mauer would have been had he entered free agency, there is bound to be a few teams looking for an upgrade behind the plate. Ramos could be a prime target for a competitive team near the trade deadline, but I still feel the Twins should wait, at least a little while longer.
I highly doubt the Twins and/or Mauer would want to move their All-Star MVP catcher to another position, so, barring a career ending injury, the Twins could be able to move Ramos. The Twins seem to be pretty set with their roster this year, however, there are plenty of free agents that could be gone before the 2011 starts.
The infield could take a hit with Orlando Hudson and Nick Punto becoming free agents. Punto does have an option available, but I doubt the Twins would take on a $5MM contract for a utility player. Some power could be on the move as well as Jim Thome and Jason Kubel will be free agents after the end of this season. Like Punto, Kubel also has a option worth $5.25MM that the club may or may not pick up.
It’s the pitching staff, though, namely the bullpen, that could hurt the most for the Twins as far as free agents are concerned. Carl Pavano is the only starter that is set to be a free agent, but Jon Rauch, Jesse Crain, Matt Guerrier and Ron Mahay will also be free agents. The Twins will likely make deals with some of the pitchers, but it’s hard to imagine a scenario where all of them are brought back.
This is where Ramos comes in. The Twins could potentially trade Ramos to fill in any holes that is left by free agency in their bullpen. Another possibility is to bring in an outfielder or another quality starting pitcher, or both. Maybe even a third baseman if Danny Valencia doesn’t work out or isn’t even brought up to the majors.
It will be a hard choice for the Twins to make and one that fans won’t like to see, especially with the raw talent that Ramos seems to possess. On the other hand, though, you don’t want Ramos to whittle away in the minors when there is a roadblock named Joe Mauer in the way. Having two quality catchers is a nice situation for the Twins to be in, but one has to say that Ramos’ fate was sealed once Mauer signed the dotted line on March 21st.
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I would respectfully disagree. Although I agree that he is an everyday player and should hone his skills in Rochester, it may be beneficial for Wilson to stay in the bigs for a while.
It would all hinge on the time frame for Morales return. If Morales is going to be out for another month or longer, I would be of the opinion that Wilson can prove to be far more valuable with the Twins then Butera. One could hope that he would spend time with Mauer and the coaching staff learning how to call a game and getting valuable insight. He could also be used to pinch hit and run when needed (much better option then Harris or Casilla).
If it is going to be a month or less, just ride it out with Butera.