José Ramírez had just spent a random day in early June challenging people to Mario Kart. He was trash talking anyone in sight -- clubhouse attendants, teammates, coaches or media members. And just a few hours later, Ramírez took the field and hit three home runs against the Red Sox in a 10-3 victory.

The next day, his teammate Triston McKenzie was being asked about Ramírez’s fun, laid-back, jovial personality in the clubhouse and couldn’t keep the grin off his face. When McKenzie was asked for the best way to describe Ramírez, he simply said: “Perennial superstar.”

• MLB All-Star Game presented by Mastercard: Tuesday on FOX, 8 p.m. ET

Superstars come in all shapes and sizes. Ramírez isn’t built like 6-foot-7 Aaron Judge. He has a very different skill set than two-way player Shohei Ohtani. He didn’t come up and shock the baseball world with his overwhelming talent and speed like Elly De La Cruz has. Yet year after year, he’s become a lock for the All-Star Game and he’s always at the top of the leaderboard in nearly every offensive category.

Ramírez is undoubtedly a five-tool player, demonstrating his elite ability in hitting for average, hitting for power, as a defender, with his arm strength and his speed. And if you ask his coaches and teammates, he’s unlocked a secret sixth tool. Ramírez will have a chance to show off all of his talents at the All-Star Game at T-Mobile Park in Seattle on Tuesday.

“He is one of the very best players in the game,” Guardians manager Terry Francona said, “and the more people to know it, not the better for Josey, but the more fair it is [to him] because that’s how good he is.”

Ramírez may be one of the most underrated players who consistently finds his way to the Midsummer Classic. Let’s take a closer look at why he’s a six-tool player.

Hitting for average and power
Ramírez usually floats between a .270 and .280 average every season. It’s not at the top of the leaderboards, but his consistency over his 11-year career is what’s key. And when he delivers hits, they’re usually timely. In his career up until Friday, he’s owned a .302 average with a .923 OPS in high-leverage situations. Plus, his strikeout rate this season was the lowest in the AL (9.7%) when he found out he was an All-Star on Sunday.

When it comes to power, he ranked fifth in RBIs (675), 12th in slugging percentage (.526) and tied for 14th in homers (198) from 2016 through Friday among all Major Leaguers. He also owns the third-highest fWAR in that span (42.9), trailing just Mookie Betts and Mike Trout.

“You expect something good to happen every time he comes to the plate,” Guardians assistant hitting coach Victor Rodríguez said. “Because even if he doesn’t hit it, you know he will do something to impact that game.”

Defense and arm strength
The only thing missing from Ramírez’s sparkling résumé is a Gold Glove. This season, he’s ranked in the 96th percentile in outs above average. Over the last few years, he’s put an emphasis on his defense, trying to prove he’s also one of the best defenders in the game.

“I think it’s one of his most underappreciated parts of his game,” Guardians starter Cal Quantrill said last year. “But that’s only because he’s doing everything else so well.”

Speed
Ramírez has never ranked higher than the 83rd percentile in sprint speed in any season of his career. He’s averaged around the 70th percentile. But he exhibits a high intelligence on the bases, knowing when to go first to third or when to swipe the extra bag. He put it on full display last week in Kansas City when he stole home in the 10th inning to give the Guardians a lead.

“Josey is the prototypical like pull the cape off and go,” Francona said. “He’s fearless. But he’s also extremely intelligent.”

The sixth tool
If you listen to Francona talk about Ramírez even just for a matter of seconds, you’ll hear him reference Ramírez’s clock. It’s his innate ability to know exactly what to do at the right time. Like the time in 2021 when a rundown between first and second led to him ending up on third base because no one was covering the bag.

This is the tool that makes all the other aspects of his game better. It’s what makes him different from all the other players in Major League Baseball.

“He’ll surprise you with his talent,” Rodríguez said. “Things that he does that you don’t teach. You cannot teach. It’s just natural. Instinct. That’s what he is.”