Undersized, underrated and having undergone Tommy John surgery in college, Miami Marlins reliever AJ Ramos has flown under the radar during his five-year major league career.
Until Tuesday.
Always appreciated by his teammates, Ramos received national attention when he was named to his first National League All-Star team.
“I listened to all the criticism and I let that fuel me,” said Ramos, who has converted 25 of 26 save opportunities this season, second-best behind Mets closer and fellow All-Star Jeurys Familia, who is
30-for-30.
“A lot of people counted me out especially after I had Tommy John surgery my junior year. I always worked hard to try and overcome everything. ... I know what I can do and I don’t care what people say. I know if I work hard I’m going to be where I’m going to be and this is just an example of it right now.”
Ramos is joined on the All-Star team by recently acquired reliever Fernando Rodney, 39, starter Jose Fernandez, 23, and center fielder Marcell Ozuna, 25. Ramos was like a kid in a candy store when team owner Jeffrey Loria told the four Marlins they had made the All-Star squad before Tuesday’s game. He then had his cell phone blow up with congratulatory text messages.
“Usually when you get called in the principal’s office it’s bad news,” Ramos said with a smile. “He called me in and said, ‘I have some bad news. You guys won’t be able to get those days off, because you’re going to San Diego.’
“It was a surreal moment because that was one of my goals this season. And my team was able to put me in position to get those saves. It was an amazing day.”
Marlins manager Don Mattingly felt that left fielder Christian Yelich, third baseman Martin Prado and catcher JT Realmuto also had All-Star credentials.
He was still proud of matching the club record with four All-Star representatives, although, he joked, “we’ve only had Rodney for a few days.”
“It goes back to what we’ve talked about all year long,” Mattingly said. “We feel we have a talented club and we have high hopes. It speaks to the talent level here. Not necessarily experience, but it’s growing and going in the right direction.”
Realmuto, who went 0 for 4 Wednesday to snap a string of seven consecutive hits, is batting .320 in his second full major league season. He understood why fellow NL catchers Buster Posey, Jonathan Lucroy and Wilson Ramos were selected ahead of him. “Obviously, [the possibility of getting selected] crosses your mind, but the guys who made it really deserved it,” Realmuto said. “Making the All-Star team is awesome, but the main goal here is to win games, get in the playoffs and win the World Series.
“It’s great to see [AJ] get the recognition he deserves.” Fernandez said he felt more Marlins should be in San Diego next week. “We’re lucky to be a part of it, but at the same time, I feel like we have a lot of players who deserve to be there, to be talked about,” he said.