PORT ST. LUCIE — Yohan Ramirez felt as if his career needed a jump-start after pitching to mixed results from the bullpen for the Pirates and White Sox last season.
The right-hander returned home to the Dominican Republic and was soon receiving a Ph.D on his craft from a Hall of Famer and his brother, another successful former major league pitcher.
This spring, the 28-year-old Ramirez has felt reenergized as he attempts to secure a spot on the Mets’ Opening Day roster. For that, he owes a debt of gratitude to Pedro and Ramon Martinez.
“It’s a beautiful thing, and it was exciting for me to be able to learn from them,” Ramirez said Saturday through an interpreter at Clover Park. “It almost reenergizes me and helps me reinvent my career from learning from them, just to be able to take away the special things they were able to do and put it into my game.”
It was Ramirez’s agent Fern Cuza — he also represented the Martinez brothers during their respective careers — that arranged for the sessions.
Ramirez said much of the instruction was just discussing how to approach certain situations.
But the Martinez brothers also shared their personal experiences.
“I was able to acquire a lot of that and put that into my bullpens and into the game and I was able to see the game in a different way and I think that did help me a lot,” Ramirez said.
“Pedro and Ramon have been helping a lot of the young pitchers [in the Dominican] and sharing their experience, their knowledge with us. Both of them are doing that, but Ramon mostly because he’s over there full time and he puts in a lot of passion and love to what he’s doing. He’s really just trying to help the young guys go in the right direction and just share his experiences.”
Following the sessions, Ramirez pitched in the Dominican Winter League, where he caught the Mets’ attention. The Mets acquired him from the White Sox in December for $100,000.
This spring he’s appeared in five Grapefruit League games for the Mets and hasn’t allowed an earned run. In his last appearance, on Thursday against the Cardinals, he pitched two innings and struck out four batters.
“This is a guy coming into camp we knew he could be tough on righties,” manager Carlos Mendoza said. “He’s sinker/slider and when he’s attacking hitters he’s going to get a ton of ground balls and now with the four-seam [fastball] we really like what we are seeing. For him to go two innings the other day, that is a plus, too. He’s in a good spot right now.”
The fact Ramirez doesn’t have minor league options remaining works in his favor in regards to Opening Day. If Ramirez isn’t placed on the roster he would have to pass through waivers for the Mets to keep him.
Last season, Ramirez was claimed off waivers by the White Sox in September after bouncing between Triple-A and the major leagues for the Pirates. Overall he pitched to a 4.23 ERA in 31 appearances in the big leagues.
“Once that I made the necessary adjustments I felt were needed I ended up moving to a different league,” Ramirez said. “I think when we were working on certain things and I finally would get into a rhythm something would happen where I would be sent down and I would lose that rhythm. That was a takeaway from the season last year.”
Buoyed by the confidence he received from his offseason workouts with the Martinez brothers, Ramirez would like to think he’s here to stay with the Mets.
“I feel good about it,” Ramirez said. “I have put in a lot of work and I’ve also had success in this spring training so I want to continue to go out there and do my best and whatever the team needs me to do I am happy to do.”
