Dominican José Ramírez sends a strong message: “I am better than Barry Bonds”

The Dominican player of the Cleveland Guardians, José Ramírez, is having a huge year in the Major Leagues, showing all his potential and the team thanks him with a great streak.

The level at which he is playing during the month of May alongside the Cleveland Guardians, who lead the central division of the American League, is one of the best we have seen in the Dominican’s 12-year career.

During the last game of the series against the Los Angeles Angels, last Sunday, May 26, during the sixth inning, something occurred that the Cleveland press is calling the “Barry Bonds treatment” with José Ramírez.

With the bases loaded, the Dominican received a walk that drove in the winning run, and many have brought up parallels about how during the best moment of his career, pitchers preferred to transfer Bonds and not face him directly, similar to what could be seen in that turn.

When questioned about the situation, Paul Hoynes, host of The Cleveland Baseball Talk Podcast, along with Joe Noga, told the story about José Ramírez’s response when comparing him to Barry Bonds.

“Ron Washington gave the greatest show of respect (to José Ramírez) yesterday in the sixth inning with the bases loaded (…) intentionally ‘unintentionally’ they walked him to get the run that would end up being the one for the victory in the match (…)”, Hoynes began by commenting. Noga at that time pointed out that the Dominican received the “Barry Bonds treatment” and later proceeded to ask Hoynes to tell what Ramírez told him about it.

“He told me ‘they don’t want to throw me, they definitely wanted to throw me out of the zone’ and I said ‘they gave you the Barry Bonds treatment’, to which he replied ‘I’m better than Barry Bonds’ and he said it in perfect English, Joe “Hoynes said amid laughter, indicating to the listeners that the third baseman’s comment was, obviously, in a joking tone.

José Ramírez sets record with Guardians

Ramírez exhibited an OPS of 1.018 in May, the sixth best of the month, and with several games still to play during this period, the Dominican has the possibility of setting a new historical mark for the Cleveland Guardians franchise, being the total record of 39, achieved by Jim Thome in July 2001.

The last time a player from the Guardians (previously known as the Indians) reached a similar number was Travis Hafner in August 2006 Víctor Martínez in 2004. However, Ramírez’s feat is not only notable for the number of RBIs, but because of the way he has achieved them.

In a game against the Angels, Ramírez hit two home runs that contributed significantly to his monthly tally. Additionally, his performance has been a determining factor in the Guardians’ winning streak, their longest in seven years.

Keep reading:

Dominican José Ramírez makes history with the Cleveland Guardians as the third baseman with the most home runs in the franchise
Dominican José Ramírez on controversy with Tim Anderson: “I tried to apologize to him but I have not received a response”
“He told me he wanted to fight”: Dominican José Ramírez explains the reason for the fight with Tim Anderson in the White Sox vs Guardians [Video]