Jose Ramirez on Friday blasted three homers and carried the Guardians to victory, claiming another place in Cleveland baseball history in the process.
Ramirez hit a solo homer in the first inning, a tying two-run shot in the fifth and another solo shot in the ninth of the Guardians’ 8-6 victory over the Los Angeles Angels, ending Cleveland’s three-game skid.
Ramirez’s 26th career multi-homer game moved him even with Albert Belle and Jim Thome for the most multi-homer performances in the history of the franchise, which began playing in 1901.
Photo: Kiyoshi Mio / Imagn Images
It was also the second three-homer game of Ramirez’s career, which has been spent entirely with Cleveland.
“I appreciate these types of days,” Ramirez said through an interpreter. “Sometimes it’s hard to hit one, and then when you hit three, you just thank God for these type of games, and most importantly because we won.”
Ramirez connected twice off Angels starter Jose Soriano, homering on two low breaking balls that looked quite similar — both on the way in to the plate and on the way out of right field.
He got his third off a high fastball from rookie Caden Dana, adding an insurance run that helped the Guardians to survive the Angels’ two-run rally later in the ninth.
Ramirez also hit three homers on June 8, 2023, at home against the Boston Red Sox. His 259 homers are the second-most in Cleveland history, trailing only Thome’s 337.
Ramirez’s coaches and teammates could only marvel at another signature night from a superstar who does not always get his due.
“Best player in the world,” Cleveland manager Stephen Vogt said with a grin. “Man, he’s some kind of impressive. What a great night. Really picked us up on a night where we needed a lot of offense and our best player came through the way those guys do. They step up. They know when we need that. They just have a knack for finding ways to do that. A three-homer game, those are so rare in itself, but to be able to witness it and to have him do it the way he did was really impressive.”
Ramirez did it six days after spraining his right wrist while sliding in a game against the Kansas City Royals, a mishap that forced him to miss one game and has left him still missing a large chunk of skin on his hand.
The Guardians expect such feats from Ramirez, a six-time All-Star who made the All-MLB first team last season while leading Cleveland to 92 victories, the American League Central crown and the AL Championship Series.
He led the Guardians in homers (39), RBIs (118) and stolen bases (41), barely missing the 40-40 club.
He has not stolen a base yet this season, but he is off to a strong start in the quest for his first 40-homer season.
“You always want good outcomes every time you hit,” Ramirez said. “Sometimes you hit the first homer and then you don’t hit anything after that. We got good results.”
Elsewhere on Friday, it was:
‧ Braves 10, Marlins 0
‧ Brewers 3, Reds 2
‧ Cubs 3, Padres 1
‧ Giants 10, Mariners 9 (11i)
‧ Mets 5, Blue Jays 0
‧ Nationals 4, Diamondbacks 6
‧ Phillies 3, Dodgers 2
‧ Pirates 4, Yankees 9
‧ Rangers 5, Rays 2
‧ Red Sox 13, Cardinals 9
‧ Rockies 3, Athletics 6 (11i)
‧ Royals 8, Orioles 2
‧ Tigers 7, White Sox 4
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