Rays add righty pop, acquire Ramirez from Cubs

PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. -- The Rays may have found the right-handed bat they’ve been looking for on Friday night, acquiring outfielder/designated hitter Harold Ramirez from the Cubs in exchange for Minor League infielder Esteban Quiroz.

Ramírez, 27, has hit .271/.308/.405 with 18 home runs in 221 games for Miami and Cleveland over the last three years. He could help fill a need for the Rays, who have been pursuing a right-handed bat to fill the void they created by trading Mike Brosseau and Jordan Luplow amid an offseason roster crunch.

Ramírez seems a likely candidate to do just that, having hit .288/.333/.441 against left-handed pitchers in his Major League career. He may not be a perfect fit positionally, as there’s a better fit for a right-handed hitter who can play first base rather than joining Tampa Bay’s already crowded outfield mix. But the Rays were intrigued enough by his bat to make the move, and general manager Peter Bendix said they see Ramírez primarily as a DH who’s capable of playing the corner outfield spots.

“It's an area where we could use some help right now,” Bendix said Saturday morning. “He's somebody that we think can raise our floor against left-handed pitching and kind of lengthen out the lineup, and that's something we've been looking for for a while now.”

Ramírez had only just arrived at the Cubs’ Spring Training camp in Arizona on Friday due to visa issues coming from Colombia -- he hadn’t even unpacked his bags yet, Bendix said -- so it’s unclear when he’ll be prepared for game action. But Ramírez will have a path to make the team whenever he’s ready, especially since he’s out of Minor League options.

“I think we have to just kind of see how he is physically, see how his timing is and give him a runway to be able to get up to speed,” Bendix said.

Ramírez was bumped out of the Cubs’ outfield picture when they signed Japanese slugger Seiya Suzuki. Similarly, it was hard to see the 30-year-old Quiroz cracking the Rays’ infield anytime soon despite hitting .268/.401/.526 with 12 homers in 68 games for Triple-A Durham last year. Tampa Bay acquired Quiroz alongside prospect Xavier Edwards and outfielder Hunter Renfroe in the deal that sent Tommy Pham and Jake Cronenworth to San Diego in December 2019.

To make room for Ramírez on the 40-man roster, the Rays placed right-hander Nick Anderson on the 60-day injured list. Anderson is not expected to pitch in the first half of the season while recovering from right elbow surgery.

Patiño feels strong in live BP
Right-hander Luis Patiño threw 24 pitches over two “innings” of live batting practice on Saturday morning at Charlotte Sports Park, seemingly free of the shoulder soreness that led him to back out of his scheduled start last Tuesday. Patiño said afterward that he pitched to teammates Manuel Margot and Taylor Walls with game-like intensity.

“I feel good,” Patiño said through interpreter Manny Navarro. “I think it was the best decision I made, to take a few days off to be able to be ready for this and build the strength up again and just get over what was bothering me, and I felt absolutely amazing.”

Patiño had been scheduled to pitch in Tuesday’s Grapefruit League game, but he asked out of the assignment due to lingering soreness in the back of his throwing shoulder. He threw a bullpen session on Wednesday, faced hitters Saturday and hasn’t felt anything in his arm either time. He is scheduled to throw another bullpen session next Tuesday, which puts him in line for an outing next Thursday, and he’ll be on track to start the regular season (albeit perhaps with a limited workload) on time.

“I think I’m going to be feeling good. I think I’m prepared,” Patiño said. “That’s why I wanted those extra days, because I knew I was going to have that much time and I wanted to be able to go in healthy at the beginning of the year.”

Up next
Left-hander Ryan Yarbrough, who has upped his fastball and cutter velocity back to his early career levels, will make his first official appearance of the spring as he starts for the Rays against the Braves on Sunday afternoon at Charlotte Sports Park. Former Ray Charlie Morton is scheduled to start for Atlanta. First pitch is set for 1:05 p.m. ET. The game will air on Bally Sports Sun, MLB.TV, WDAE 95.3 FM/620 AM and the Rays Radio Network.