Baseball Prospectus

MLB Statistics

Statistics for All Levels

Plate Discipline

Preseason Long-Term Forecast (Beyond the 2019 Projections)

Comparable Players (Similarity Index 73)

Rank	Score	Name	Year	Run Average	Trend
1	89	D.J. Carrasco	2012	7.36
2	82	Nick Masset	2017	0.00	DNP
3	81	Steve Karsay	2007	0.00	DNP
4	80	Chris Sampson	2013	0.00	DNP
5	78	Brian Sanches	2014	0.00	DNP
6	78	Jim Brower	2008	0.00	DNP
7	78	Daisuke Matsuzaka	2016	0.00	DNP
8	77	Ramiro Mendoza	2007	0.00	DNP
9	77	R.A. Dickey	2010	3.20
10	77	Dustin McGowan	2017	4.87
11	76	Bryan Corey	2009	0.00	DNP
12	76	Claudio Vargas	2013	0.00	DNP
13	76	Travis Driskill	2007	9.00
14	76	Scott Atchison	2011	3.26
15	76	Lou Pote	2007	0.00	DNP
16	76	Brandon Lyon	2015	0.00	DNP
17	76	Jared Fernandez	2007	0.00	DNP
18	76	Tim Redding	2013	0.00	DNP
19	76	Luis Ayala	2013	3.00
20	75	John Halama	2007	0.00	DNP
21	75	Chris Jakubauskas	2014	0.00	DNP
22	75	Alfredo Simon	2016	9.82
23	75	Terry Leach	1989	5.40
24	74	Mark Redman	2009	0.00	DNP
25	74	Bruce Chen	2012	5.35
26	74	Craig Breslow	2016	5.79
27	74	Vic Darensbourg	2006	0.00	DNP
28	74	Clay Rapada	2016	0.00	DNP
29	74	Art Fowler	1958	0.00	DNP
30	73	Brandon Duckworth	2011	0.00	DNP
31	73	Tony Fiore	2007	0.00	DNP
32	73	Joe Grzenda	1972	6.17
33	73	Ken Ray	2010	0.00	DNP
34	73	Vladimir Nunez	2010	0.00	DNP
35	73	Jerome Williams	2017	0.00	DNP
36	73	David Aardsma	2017	0.00	DNP
37	73	Kerry Ligtenberg	2006	0.00	DNP
38	73	Kameron Loe	2017	0.00	DNP
39	73	Randy Flores	2011	0.00	DNP
40	73	John Wasdin	2008	0.00	DNP
41	73	Buddy Carlyle	2013	0.00	DNP
42	73	Braden Looper	2010	0.00	DNP
43	73	Fritz Ostermueller	1943	3.40
44	73	Shawn Estes	2008	5.36
45	73	Matt Herges	2005	7.14
46	72	Ryan Franklin	2008	3.89
47	72	Tot Pressnell	1942	6.52
48	72	Pat Mahomes	2006	0.00	DNP
49	72	Elmer Dessens	2006	5.14
50	72	Ron Mahay	2006	4.74
51	72	Randy Choate	2011	2.55
52	72	Chad Paronto	2011	0.00	DNP
53	72	Shawn Camp	2011	4.88
54	72	Rheal Cormier	2002	5.85
55	71	Shaun Marcum	2017	0.00	DNP
56	71	Rick White	2004	5.97
57	71	Tomo Ohka	2011	0.00	DNP
58	71	Murry Dickson	1952	4.53
59	71	Wilson Alvarez	2005	5.63
60	71	Carlos Torres	2018	6.52
61	71	Buddy Groom	2001	3.82
62	71	Rube Benton	1925	5.15
63	71	Dick Tidrow	1982	3.91
64	71	Tom Timmermann	1975	0.00	DNP
65	70	Jon Rauch	2014	0.00	DNP
66	70	Scott Schoeneweis	2009	7.88
67	70	Jamey Wright	2010	5.09
68	70	Todd Williams	2006	5.68
69	70	Les Walrond	2012	0.00	DNP
70	70	Chris Narveson	2017	0.00	DNP
71	70	Danny Cox	1995	7.80
72	70	Joe Slusarski	2002	0.00	DNP
73	70	Clem Labine	1962	13.50	DNP
74	70	Mike MacDougal	2012	7.94
75	70	Diego Segui	1973	3.14
76	70	Barry Zito	2013	6.35
77	70	Cory Lidle	2007	0.00	DNP
78	70	Steve Ontiveros	1996	0.00	DNP
79	70	Orel Hershiser	1994	4.46
80	70	Mark Hendrickson	2009	5.14
81	70	Frank Castillo	2004	0.00
82	70	Sonny Siebert	1972	4.81
83	70	Charlie Leibrandt	1992	3.64
84	70	Denny Galehouse	1947	3.78
85	70	Don Larsen	1965	3.79
86	70	Greg Harris	1991	4.06
87	70	Jay Witasick	2008	0.00	DNP
88	70	Mike Lincoln	2010	7.32
89	70	Marty Pattin	1978	4.58
90	69	Bobby Tiefenauer	1965	5.81
91	69	Donne Wall	2003	0.00	DNP
92	69	Brian Shouse	2004	2.44
93	69	Joe Nuxhall	1964	4.25
94	69	Chad Durbin	2013	9.56
95	69	Ray King	2009	0.00	DNP
96	69	Rick Rhoden	1988	4.84
97	69	Danny Darwin	1991	5.03
98	69	Charlie Hough	1983	3.43
99	69	Guy Bush	1937	3.66
100	69	Pat Neshek	2016	3.26

BP Annual Player Comments

Year		Comment
2018		Cesar Ramos hadn't spent the entire year in the minors since Barack Obama was a future president instead of an ex-president, but he's been effective enough and left-handed enough that we're unwilling to concede that he's not getting another shot or five in MLB camps.
2016		The curveball emerged as Ramos' most potent pitch last season, accounting for 28 of his strikeouts (versus just eight curves put into play all season). The southpaw kept the pitch hidden from view until he got two strikes on a batter, resulting in a usage rate of just 12 percent. The slow breaker comes in at 71 mph and never stood out of his repertoire prior to last season. The deadly curve was necessary because every other blade in his bag was dull.
2015		The wealth of pitching cultivated by the Rays' organization has been a selling point of the franchise since they dropped the "Devil" in 2008. So naturally, Ramos, with 143 career relief appearances and three starts, broke camp as the club's fifth starter. What?!? In lieu of rushing a prospect to cover injuries in the rotation, Ramos was pressed into starting duty until a healthy alternative arrived. The transition was relatively painless as Ramos, even as a reliever, works with a four-pitch selection—fastball, curveball, slider, changeup—and served as the de facto long man in the bullpen. Meanwhile, endurance proved to be his biggest hurdle as he struggled working late into games. After a handful of starts, his work in the rotation was complete and he was relegated back to his low-leverage perch in the 'pen. The Angels gave up a prospect to get him, and will appreciate the depth he provides in each role.
2014		The Rays have shifted from a specialized to a free-form bullpen in recent seasons, leaving a flexible arm like Ramos filling several different roles. At times, he has been used as a one-out lefty, but he has also served as the de facto long man and even made a spot start along the way. The former starter continues to use a four-pitch mix, including a low-90s fastball, a mid-80s changeup and a pair of breaking balls that have more than 10 mph of separation. Arbitration-eligible for the first time, Ramos is still a bargain considering his versatility and quality arsenal.
2013		Ramos was actually better against right-handers than lefties in 2012, but he was good against both. Like Gomes, Ramos might have spent the whole year on a big-league roster with a lesser pitching staff. Instead, he threw twice as many Triple-A innings as he logged in the majors. The difference comes mainly from his late-season insertion into the Bulls starting rotation, where he had poor results: His starting ERA of 4.84 was more than double his relief ERA, inflated by six homers in 35 innings as a starter. Ramos perhaps throws too many modest strikes to survive multiple trips through a lineup. The former first-rounder still offers a useful lefty arm if someone figures out how to use it.
2012		He was one of the two former first round draft picks the Padres sent the Rays for Jason Bartlett, but he was the only one who displayed any value during the season. Ramos ended up replacing Howell as the LOOGY on the team until McGee stepped up to fill the role. Ramos struck out 20 percent of the left-handed batters he faced while limiting them to a 639 OPS in 100 plate appearances. In all, he gave up just eight extra base hits in 192 plate appearances on the season but overall, his sweeping breaking ball is more effective against lefties. With Ramos’s stuff it would behoove him to be sly on the mound, yet he shows an aggressive and combative streak.
2011		Ramos doesn't have a true out pitch, and as a pitch-to-contact guy he allows his share of balls in play. That was the case in his first 23 innings with the Friars, for whom Ramos has walked 3.1 per nine with a BABIP of .363—small sample caveats apply, of course, but it's hard not to know that a pitcher with fringe-average stuff and a tendency to seek out contact is going to give up plenty of hits. His ERA was shinier in Portland, but there his K/BB ratio was just 1.5, even worse than his career major-league rate of 1.8. Moving to the American League East as part of the Jason Bartlett trade won't make things any easier for him, but the Rays will give him a chance to be a LOOGY in their new-look pen nonetheless.
2010		"Pitch-to-contact" has become one of baseball's buzz phrases in recent years, and it perfectly describes Ramos's style. His three-pitch arsenal of a fastball, slider, and changeup is average any way you splice it, but he locates each pitch to all quadrants of the strike zone, and understands how to attack hitters' weaknesses. The problem is that hitters make too much contact against him, increasing the chances of balls falling in for hits. He'll be a fifth starter in the majors at best, and looks more like a long reliever who can soak up innings.
2009		A supplemental first-round pick three years ago, Ramos has always earned praise for his aggressiveness and bulldog attitude, but he's a bit like the guy at the bar who gets some liquid courage and takes on the bouncer. Fearlessness is nice and all, but without much in the way of actual stuff, he's not exactly intimidating anyone. Average stuff plus average command will equal a number five starter at best, but this year's performance at Triple-A showed that he's not even there yet.
2008		Cesar Ramos has put up good ERAs and remained healthy while pitching in tough environments, but his lack of stuff (reflected by his lousy strikeout rates) makes him more suspect than prospect
2007		Cesar Ramos is a lefty who pitches a lot like Mario (Ramos, not the Donkey Kong character). He relies on good location, a decent change, and his defense. He`s a hard-worker and an energetic bulldog, but, without a real fastball, he`s a longshot.

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PITCHf/x Pitcher Profile

A Collaboration between BrooksBaseball.net and Baseball Prospectus - Pitch classifications provided by Pitch Info LLC

Although he has not thrown an MLB pitch in 2024, César Ramos threw 5,476 pitches that were tracked by the PITCHf/x system between 2009 and 2016, all of them occuring in Spring Training. In 2016, he relied primarily on his Sinker (89mph), Slider (83mph) and Change (82mph), also mixing in a Curve (69mph) and Fourseam Fastball (89mph).