With the 19th overall pick in the 2017 draft, the San Francisco Giants selected Heliot Ramos out of Puerto Rico.
Ramos, whose brother Henry played for the Diamondbacks in 2021 and the Reds last season, possessed one of the better power/speed combinations in his draft class. He signed for just more than $3,000,000 and entered the realm of Top 100 prospect in 2018, ranked as the 79th best prospect by Baseball America, 63rd by MLB Pipeline, and 61st by Baseball Prospectus.
He remained in the top 100 through 2022, ranking as high as 32nd by BP, and was selected to appear in three Futures Games. However, the road to success in the majors has not been a straight line for Ramos as he has spent parts of the last eight years in the minors, including starting this season at Triple-A Sacramento.
Since joining the Giants on May 8 when Jorge Soler got hurt along with a slew of other outfielders, it has become impossible to take Ramos out of the lineup as he is finally showing why the Giants selected him in the first round way back in ’17.
It has been a slow march, but let’s examine why I consider him an up-and-coming dynasty player.
The Stats (as of June 21)
| YEAR | AB | R | HR | RBI | SB | AVG | OBP | SLG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 20 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .100 | .182 | .100 |
| 2023 | 56 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 0 | .179 | .233 | .304 |
| 2024 | 150 | 17 | 10 | 35 | 1 | .307 | .382 | .553 |
| Last 7 Days | 32 | 4 | 4 | 11 | 0 | .313 | .371 | .750 |
| Last 14 Days | 58 | 5 | 5 | 16 | 0 | .310 | .339 | .621 |
| Last 28 Days | 96 | 10 | 8 | 26 | 0 | .313 | .402 | .604 |
Heliot Ramos has never really posted huge minor league numbers. Ahead of this season, the most homers he has ever hit down on the farm was 16 back in 2019 and the most RBI he has ever had was 56 in 2021. And that speed? Well, it has never really materialized. The most steals he’s had in a season is 15, also in 21. Overall, his career minor league numbers are a .267/.341/.449 slash line with 80 homers, 307 RBI, and 58 steals in 582 games.
Of course, one of the reasons Ramos hasn’t posted outrageous numbers in the minors is the fact that he has often been one of the youngest players at his level. The Giants have pushed him, and while the results have not always been pretty, it has allowed Ramos to compete against players five to seven years older than him.
Two Previous Cups of Coffee
Heliot Ramos has twice seen time with the Giants prior to 2024. In 2022 he appeared in nine games but went 2-for-20 at the plate with a .100/.182/.100 slash line. In 2023, he appeared in 25 games. However, in 56 at-bats he managed only a .179/.233/.304 slash line with one home run and two RBI.
Adding insult to injury was a strikeout rate of 27.3% and 33.3% during those two cups of coffee and a walk rate of 9.1% and then 6.7%. Ramos’ Average EV of 87.3 mph last year was below the MLB average while his had a ground ball rate of 47.2%, nearly five points higher than the MLB average.
Needless to say, those were not the numbers expected from a former first-round draft choice.
New Year, New Man
Ramos was at a crossroads entering this season. The Giants brought in Soler as well as Jung Hoo Lee during the offseason and already had Michael Conforto and Austin Slater on the roster as well as Mike Yastremski. Ramos was unable to break camp with the Giants but didn’t let that affect him.
At Sacramento, Ramos slashed .296/.388/.565 with eight homers and 21 RBI in 30 games. And the hitting has continued with the Giants as he is slashing .307/.382/.553 with 10 homers and 35 RBI in his first 39 games. For the season between the minors and the majors, in 265 at-bats he has 18 homers and 56 RBI.
So, What’s Changed?
Heliot Ramos looks like a different player this season compared to his two previous stints with the Giants. And the improvement he is showing is not just in one area but across the board as he been hitting the ball on the barrel with consistency.
His 16.7 Barrel% rate ranks in the 95th percentile and is 11th overall among qualified hitters. His Average EV of 92.4 mph ranks in the 92nd percentile and 23rd overall. Meanwhile, his Hard-Hit% ranks in the 98th percentile and 6th overall.
Lifting the Ball…
In addition to hitting the ball harder more consistently, Ramos is also lifting the ball. Last season his fly ball rate was 19.4%. This season it has increased to 25.5%. Harder hit balls + higher fly ball rate = high slugging percentage.
In addition to the 10 homers he has seven doubles, leading to a .936 OPS and an OPS+ of 171.
…And Hitting to All Fields
All of the previous numbers talked about are great. But what is really impressive is the fact that Ramos isn’t just trying to pull the ball to tap into his raw power. As you can see above, Ramos has sprayed the ball all over the field. Two of his homers have gone to the opposite field while five have gone to center and only three to his pull side.
Of his batted balls, only 17.6% have gone to left while 54.9% have gone up the middle and 27.5% to the opposite field.
The Future
It appears the future is now for Heliot Ramos and he is grabbing onto it. Will he continue to slug .553? Probably not. But there is no reason to believe he will suddenly revert back to the timid hitter he was during his first two stints with the Giants.
Ramos has always had the raw power – it has just taken time for him to tap into it and refine his stroke to take advantage of it. Hitting for power in San Francisco is never easy, but over the next few years I see him producing 20 to 25 homers per year with an above average slash line.
The speed that was expected from him is not going to materialize. He has grown into his 5-foot-11, and the added weight and strength have slowed him a little. He still has decent speed, but I do not expect him to be a base stealer.
Other than that, now is the time to jump on Ramos if you can. In the last week he has been added in 17.8% of ESPN leagues, raising his rostered percentage to 43.1%. In Yahoo leagues he is rostered in 78% of leagues, an increase of 9% over the last week.
