Heliot Ramos hasn't been good since joining the New York Yankees, but he is excelling in one area.
The New York Yankees made two moves at the MLB trade deadline, acquiring a pair of bats in Luis Garcia Jr. and Heliot Ramos.
Both deals were puzzling at the time given the awkward fit, but now, with Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton potentially both out for the playoffs, it makes sense.
We've already spoken enough about Garcia, so let's focus on Ramos for a second.
Ramos has not been good since arriving in the Bronx.
Heading into Saturday night's matchup against the Arizona Diamondbacks, Ramos was slashing .165/.311/.306 with two home runs and eight RBI over 103 plate appearances in pinstripes. That came after he slashed .264/.304/.424 in San Francisco this season.
Not that Ramos was exactly lighting it up with the Giants, posting a .728 OPS, but he was certainly more productive than he has been with the Yankees.
But there is one area in which Ramos has surprisingly elevated his game since the trade: plate discipline. More specifically, taking pitches.
Ramos owned a 13.6 percent walk rate with New York going into Saturday, which is well above his lifetime median of 7.3 percent.
In fact, in spite of the fact that Ramos is hitting nearly 100 points lower with the Yankees than he did with the Giants this season, his on-base percentage in New York has been higher.
Ramos has never been one for free passes. He topped out at 52 walks last season, finishing with a 7.5 percent walk rate. His OBP in 2025 was .328. He lays claim to a lifetime .316 OBP.
Is it possible there is a legitimate reason why it's suddenly improving with the Yanks? Or is this a classic case of small sample size?
Perhaps being surrounded by better hitters has helped. Ramos is still striking out, having fanned 29 times. But he is doing a much better job of working the count and, as a result, finding other ways to get on base.
Ramos is under club control through 2029, so barring an offseason trade, he could be with the Yankees for a while. If he can start making contact again and hit closer to his career average of .252 while still walking, perhaps New York might have something here.
And with Judge now possibly sidelined for the postseason due to his calf strain, Ramos might have an even bigger role than expected in October.
