Tampa Bay Rays starting pitcher Erasmo Ramirez (61) delivers a pitch during an MLB spring training game. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
The Tampa Bay Rays selected the contract of Nicaraguan right-handed pitcher Erasmo Ramirez to the major league roster on April 20.
Ramirez, 33, was born in Rivas, Nicaragua, and has played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball. He was with the Seattle Mariners from 2012-14 and 2017-18, the Tampa Bay Rays from 2015-17 and in 2023, the Boston Red Sox in 2019, the New York Mets in 2020, the Detroit Tigers in 2021, and the Washington Nationals from 2022-23.
This is Ramirez’s second stint with the Rays since he signed a minor league contract on June 13, 2023, after the Nationals released him on June 8, 2023.
Ramirez started the 2024 season in Triple-A Durham and posted a 1-0 record with a 2.16 ERA in five appearances out of the bullpen. He pitched 8.1 innings, allowing six hits, two earned runs, one home run, three walks, and 13 strikeouts before his contract was selected.
During spring training, Ramirez posted a 0-3 record and an 11.17 ERA with five appearances and two starts, recording one save, throwing 9.2 innings, allowing 18 hits, 12 earned runs, four home runs, three walks, and five strikeouts.
Ramirez signed a minor league contract with Tampa Bay on December 4, 2023, and was activated by Triple-A Durham on the same day.
Last season, Ramirez began the year in the nation’s capital. He posted a 2-3 record with Washington and a 6.33 ERA in 23 appearances out of the bullpen. He pitched 27 innings and allowed 36 hits, 19 earned runs, four home runs, six walks, 13 strikeouts, and a 1.556 WHIP before he was released.
For the remainder of 2023, he split his time between the Rays and Triple-A Durham. Ramirez went 1-0 in Tampa Bay and posted a 6.48 ERA in 15 appearances and two starts. He pitched 33.1 innings, allowing 46 hits, 24 earned runs, seven home runs, seven walks, 30 strikeouts, and a 1.590 WHIP.
With Durham, Ramirez went 2-1 with a 5.87 ERA in nine appearances and one start, throwing 23 innings, allowing 27 hits, 15 earned runs, four home runs, eight walks, 29 strikeouts, and a 1.522 WHIP.
Ramirez played for the Nicaraguan national team at the 2023 World Baseball Classic in Miami in Pool D at LoanDepot Park. He threw in two games and started in one, posting a 2.45 ERA, throwing 3.2 innings, allowing four hits, one earned run, and striking out three batters. Nicaragua went 0-4 in their first appearance at the WBC and will have to qualify for the 2026 tournament.
In Ramirez’s 12 seasons in the MLB, he has a lifetime record of 40-45 with a 4.37 ERA, throwing 828.1 innings in 314 appearances and 96 starts, allowing 815 hits, 402 earned runs, 126 home runs, 218 walks, 630 strikeouts, and a 1.247 WHIP.