Welcome back, friends. Glad to have you here reading another installment of Up-and-Coming Dynasty Players.
After featuring a catcher last week in Drake Baldwin of the Atlanta Braves, I decided to stay in the division and concentrate on the same position. We are going to head south to Miami so I can talk about catcher Agustin Ramirez.
For the most part, Ramirez has been an under-the-radar prospect who was never ranked as a top 100 prospect until this past offseason when Baseball Prospectus ranked hit at #55 but was nowhere to be seen in the Baseball America or MLB rankings.
Ramirez is making Baseball Prospectus look pretty smart as he has provided plenty of pop for the Marlins offense since his promotion from Triple-A in late April.
Why is Ramirez and Up-and-Coming Dynasty Player? Let’s find out.
Career Statistics
| YEAR | LEVEL | G | R | HR | RBI | SB | AVG | OBP | SLG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019-22 | Rookie | 117 | 74 | 14 | 92 | 14 | .249 | .329 | .445 |
| 2023 | A|A+|AA | 114 | 73 | 18 | 69 | 12 | .271 | .364 | .455 |
| 2024 | AA|AAA | 126 | 80 | 25 | 93 | 22 | .267 | .358 | .487 |
| 2025 | AAA | 19 | 13 | 3 | 12 | 5 | .254 | .313 | .479 |
| 2025 | Marlins | 83 | 45 | 15 | 46 | 3 | .238 | .282 | .452 |
Road to the Show
The New York Yankees signed Agustin Ramirez out of the Dominican as part of the 2018-19 international free agent class, and he then spent three years in rookie ball in addition to COVID wiping out his 2020 season. While in rookie ball, he showed off his power as he hit 14 homers over a combined 117 games.
In 2023, he finally started playing in Class A, and he quickly flew through the New York system, ending the season in Double-A. By the end of the year, Ramirez hit 18 homers and slugged .455. That production carried over to 2024 when he hit 25 homers and slugged .487 in 126 games.
The Marlins liked what they saw in Ramirez as he was the highlight of the package in the trade that sent Jazz Chisholm to the Yankees. After finishing the 2024 season at Triple-A Jacksonville, he started the 2025 season there as well. But it wasn’t long before the Marlins added him to the major league roster.
The Tools
When you look at Ramirez’s stats, you see a hitter who doesn’t hit for a high average and has a low OBP. So you probably think he really isn’t a good hitter. But then you look at the chart above, you have to wonder how he can be that much above average in so many areas yet have such a low batting average and OBP.
His xwOBA and Barrel% percentiles are both in the 70s. His xBA, xSLG, AEV, Hard Hit%, and bat speed are all in the 80th to 89th percentile. So Ramirez should have a better batting average. Part of his problem is that he chases too many pitches but has good enough bat control to make contact.
This season with the Marlins, he has a below-league average 18.9% strikeout rate. That matches exactly what it was during his minor league career. However, he has a chase rate of 33%, ranking in the 18th percentile. While he chases the ball out of the zone a lot, he makes contact 54% of the time, leading to a lot of weak ground balls and explains his .255 BABIP. Right now his ground ball percentage is 45.5%, above the MLB average of 41.4%.
In addition to the chase rate, Ramirez is not walking much with the Marlins. His career walk rate in the minors was 11%. Last year at Triple-A it was 11.5%. But with Miami, that walk rate has taken a drastic hit as he entered Friday with a 5.9% walk rate.
These numbers tell me Ramirez has the ability to greatly improve his batting average and OBP. As he settles in at the major league level, I expect him to stop chasing as many pitches out of the zone as his past history has shown that he is patient at the plate. When he swings at the pitches in the zone, those weak grounders and pop ups will turn into base hits.
While Agustin Ramirez is a work in progress when it comes to controlling the strike zone as a hitter, he is not a work in progress when it comes to his power. He has a nice short stroke from the right side of the plate, helping him create a lot of bat speed and hard contact.
Right now, his power is to the pull side as all but one of his homers this season have gone to left or left-center field. Overall, however, he is not a dead pull hitter as he has gone up the middle 51.5% of the time and to the opposite field 19.5% of the time, with a host of doubles going to the right-center field gap.
As he reduces his chase rate, I fully expect him to take advantage of his power and start driving the ball over the fence to right field in addition to his ability to hit with power to left.
Ramirez is not a fast runner, but his past has shown he has the ability to steal a base here and there. He reached double-digit steals in 2023 and 2024 down in the minors. However, now that he is facing pitchers who do a better job of holding baserunners on first and better catchers, the steals have not come as often.
He currently has three this season, and he may sneak in a few more. But overall, I would not count on Ramirez adding a lot of steals to your team.
The Verdict
It goes without saying that I like Agustin Ramirez. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t be writing about him. However, there is one red flag if you want to call it that.
Look at his metrics in the graphic above. They aren’t pretty. Unless Ramirez improves behind the plate, his future may be more as a designated hitter or at first base, a position he has played in the minors.
That leads to this question: while Ramirez has really nice power for a catcher, will it be good enough to want him as a first baseman or a DH-only player? The answer to that is yes. The Marlins already play him a lot at DH, and over 162 games, his stats this season would translate to 29 homers and 90 RBI.
I don’t know about you, but I would take those numbers if he were a first baseman or a DH, and especially as a catcher.
Interesting Comparisons
Thanks to Baseball Servant and the many different features it has, when you click on the similar players feature, it spits out some interesting names. After looking at all the hitting metrics it takes into account, it spit out Ceddanne Rafaela and Jackson Merrill as the two most similar players. Interesting. It also listed Jesus Sanchez, Jac Caglianone, and Ryan Mountcastle.
Those three players are actually solid comparisons. Sanchez is not a star, but he is a young, solid hitter who will likely see an uptick in numbers by moving to Houston and hitting in Daikin Park. I have talked about Caglianone, so no reason to go into him any further.
Mountcastle stood out because he showed great power with the Orioles before left field became the Grand Canyon. The fences have moved in, but injuries have not allowed Mountcastle to take advantage of the newer dimensions. But when healthy, I like what he brings to the table, and Ramirez can easily duplicate what a healthy Mountcastle can produce.
No matter who you compare Ramirez to, just go with this – he has a lot of power, and I believe his approach at the plate will improve and thus increase his average and OBP. Because of that, he is a player to go after.
Thanks for reading, and come back next week.
