Wilson Ramos is on a mission: to do a complete 180 defensively in 2020.
Ramos, 32, is in the second year of a two-year pact he signed with the Mets last year. While he had a decent year at the dish (105 wRC+, .327 wOBA and a .288/.351/.416 triple slash), it was behind the plate where he struggled.
According to Baseball Prospectus, Ramos ranked No. 102 out of 113 qualified catchers. The backstop had -4.7 framing runs, -6.7 FRAA and -8.6 FRAA adjusted in 7,685 chances.
Earlier this offseason, Mets’ general manager Brodie Van Wagenen opted to keep Ramos instead of seeking additional help behind the plate, giving the veteran a vote of confidence.
Ramos vowed to work on his defense and framing this winter, and it seems that he did just so.
Tim Britton of The Athletic reported Monday that Ramos “changed his stance behind the plate, dropping his knee to the ground, to better catch pitches down in the zone.”
Additionally, Ramos feels optimistic in handling the pitching staff this year.
“I’m 100 percent sure this year will be better,” Ramos said. “Hopefully we stay on the same page this year better than we did last year.”
Ramos notably had issues with some of the pitching corps last year, with the most prominent being Noah Syndergaard, who vocalized his disdain to pitching to Ramos.
In addition to this year, Ramos also has a club option in his contract for 2021, so if he is able to bolster his value, he could be an option to return next year as well.
