Biography
José Altagracia Ramírez (born January 21, 1990) is a Dominican professional baseball pitcher for the Sugar Land Skeeters of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. He previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees, Seattle Mariners and Atlanta Braves.
Early life
José Ramírez was born on January 21, 1990, in Yaguate, Dominican Republic to parents Silveria Mateo and Sito Ramirez.
Career
New York Yankees
Ramírez signed with the New York Yankees as an amateur free agent in 2007. Pitching for the Tampa Yankees of the Class A-Advanced Florida State League in 2012, Ramírez had a 3.19 earned run average in 98 2⁄3 innings pitched. The Yankees added him to their 40-man roster on November 20, in order to protect him from being eligible in the upcoming Rule 5 Draft.At the end of spring training the following year, the Yankees assigned Ramírez to the Trenton Thunder of the Class AA Eastern League. In 2013, Ramirez pitched for Trenton and the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders of the Class AAA International League. He missed playing time due to an injury that was thought to be an oblique injury.At the close of spring training in 2014, the Yankees decided to transition Ramírez from a starting pitcher to a relief pitcher as a result of injuries suffered earlier in his career. The Yankees promoted Ramírez to the major leagues on May 18 as the 26th man on their roster for a doubleheader, but he did not pitch and was optioned back to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre after the games. The Yankees promoted Ramírez again on June 4. He debuted against the Oakland Athletics that day by pitching two innings, yielding two hits and one run. After being sent down, he was called up again on June 13. In 2014, he was 0-2 with a 5.40 ERA for the Yankees, and in 2015 he was 0-0 with a 15.00 ERA.
Seattle Mariners
On July 30, 2015, the Yankees traded Ramírez and Ramón Flores to the Seattle Mariners for Dustin Ackley. In 2015, he was 1-0 for Seattle with an 11.57 ERA.
Atlanta Braves
After the 2015 season, the Mariners traded Ramírez to the Atlanta Braves for a player to be named later, who eventually became relief pitcher Ryne Harper. He was designated for assignment on April 11, 2016. He was assigned to the AAA Gwinnett Braves three days later, and, on June 30, he, Rob Wooten, and Matt Marksberry pitched a combined no-hitter. He was recalled on July 28.On September 14, 2016, Ramírez was ejected for the first time in his Major League career for throwing a pitch over the head of Jose Fernandez. Two days later, the MLB Disciplinary Committee suspended Ramírez three games. He dropped an appeal of the decision and began serving the suspension on September 21. In 2016, he was 2-2 for the Braves, with a 3.58 ERA. The following season he spent the entire season in the Braves bullpen, appearing in 68 games and finishing with a 2-3 record with 3.19 ERA. The Braves outrighted him to the minors on October 31, 2018. He elected free agency on November 3, 2018.
Sugar Land Skeeters
On February 5, 2020, Ramírez signed with the Sugar Land Skeeters of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball.