Wilson Ramos, Mets reportedly agree to two-year contract
The New York Mets continued their busy offseason Sunday, agreeing to a two-year contract with veteran catcherWilson Ramos, according to multiple reports.
The deal is pending a physical. Once completed, it will be worth a total of $19 million, according to Fancred.
Ramos, who was acquired by the Philadelphia Phillies from the Tampa Bay Rays at July's trade deadline, is solid defensively and is a proven commodity offensively with a career .273 batting average and 109 home runs.
The 31-year-old veteran, who made $10.5 million in 2018, batted .306 between the Phillies and Rays last season with 15 home runs and 70 RBIs.
Ramos also has been lauded for his veteran presence in the clubhouse and his ability to handle pitching staffs.
The two-time All-Star spent six-plus seasons with the Washington Nationals (2010-16) after breaking into the majors with the Minnesota Twins in 2010. He won a Silver Slugger award in 2016 after belting 22 homers with 80 RBIs and a .307 batting average with the Nationals.
New York officials met last week with Ramos at the winter meetings in Las Vegas and with Yasmani Grandal, another free-agent catcher, in Arizona. Ramos became the priority for the Mets, partly because of compensation required for signing Grandal, who turned down a $17.9 million qualifying offer from the Los Angeles Dodgers. If New York had signed Grandal, the Mets would have forfeited their second-highest pick in next June's amateur draft and $500,000 of international signing bonus allocation in 2019-20.
The Mets also had been rumored to be in the trade mix for catcher J.T. Realmuto, so the agreement with Ramos would seemingly take them out of the mix for theMiami Marlins All-Star.
Getting Ramos crosses another item of the to-do list of new general manager Brodie Van Wagenen. The former agent made a blockbuster deal with Seattle for second baseman Robinson Cano and closer Edwin Diaz this month and also brought back former New York closer Jeurys Familia on a $30 million, three-year deal last week. The team may still pursue an upgrade in center field and a left-handed reliever.
Ramos is expected to be New York's primary catcher, with Travis d'Arnaud and Kevin Plawecki as possible backups. D'Arnaud, who turns 30 in February, has been on the disabled list in five straight seasons as injuries limited him to 366 major league games, an average of 73 per season. He was 3-for-15 (.200) with one homer and three RBI in four games this year when he felt tightness in his right elbow during pregame drills in Miami. He was sent to New York and had an MRI that revealed a torn ulnar collateral ligament. Mets medical director Dr. David Altchek performed Tommy John surgery on April 17.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
