The Cleveland Indians were dealt a potentially crippling blow when Jose Ramirez suffered a broken hamate bone and had to undergo surgery on Aug. 26.
Although the timetable for recovery from this injury tends to be up to eight weeks, Ramirez could be in the lineup for the Indians on Sunday night after a shocking recovery. He faced live pitching on Saturday, and Paul Hoynes of cleveland.com reports that Ramirez already looks like he is nearing full strength:
Ramirez, who had the hamate bone removed from his right hand on Aug. 26, could be back in the Indians lineup as soon as Sunday night when they play the Phillies on ESPN at Progressive Field.
“It was another really good day for him,” said Chris Antonetti, Indians president of baseball operations on Saturday afternoon.
The switch-hitting Ramirez took batting practice against real pitchers — right-hander Jefry Ramirez and minor league lefty Kyle Nelson — not coaches. He made solid contact from both sides of the plate and drove the ball well.
After establishing himself as one of the elite talents in baseball last season, Ramirez had a shockingly poor start to his 2019 campaign. Ramirez slashed a woeful .218/.308/.652 with just seven homers prior to the All-Star break.
However, Ramirez propelled the Indians on their epic run back to contention in the second half. In 41 games, he was slashing .327/.363/.705 with 13 homers and six stolen bases.
Cleveland has lacked steady production in the lineup to complement a dominant pitching staff. Despite the offensive struggles, they are still just one game back of the Tampa Bay Rays for the second Wild Card spot in the American League.
With Ramirez looking to make a triumphant return, the Indians might just have one final push left in the race for October.
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