Aramis Ramirez
The most underrated third baseman of the 2000s quietly assembled one of the era's most consistent offensive records. Ramirez's 386 career home runs rank among the top dozen third basemen in baseball history, yet he never received serious MVP consideration despite multiple elite seasons.
His 2004 campaign stands as a masterpiece of sustained excellence — that .951 OPS represents a 25% improvement over league average, anchoring a Cubs lineup that finally showed promise. What made Ramirez special wasn't peak performance but remarkable durability and clutch timing, as evidenced by his 1,417 RBI over 18 seasons.
The Dominican slugger's career arc tells the story of smart, patient hitting. His OPS+ of 108 across nearly 2,200 games demonstrates the kind of above-average production that wins championships, even if it doesn't generate headlines. Three All-Star selections undersell a player who provided steady power from baseball's most demanding defensive position.
Career · Batting
18 seasons| Year | Team | G | AB | HR | RBI | AVG | OPS | OPS+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | PIT | 72 | 251 | 6 | 24 | .235 | .646 | 86 |
| 1999 | PIT | 18 | 56 | 0 | 7 | .179 | .504 | 65 |
| 2000 | PIT | 73 | 254 | 6 | 35 | .256 | .695 | 89 |
| 2001 | PIT | 158 | 603 | 34 | 112 | .300 | .885 | 117 |
| 2002 | PIT | 142 | 522 | 18 | 71 | .234 | .666 | 89 |
| 2003 | PIT | 159 | 607 | 27 | 106 | .272 | .788 | 104 |
| 2004 | CHC | 145 | 547 | 36 | 103 | .318 | .951 | 125 |
| 2005 | CHC | 123 | 463 | 31 | 92 | .302 | .926 | 124 |
| 2006 | CHC | 157 | 594 | 38 | 119 | .291 | .912 | 119 |
| 2007 | CHC | 132 | 506 | 26 | 101 | .310 | .915 | 121 |
| 2008 | CHC | 149 | 554 | 27 | 111 | .289 | .898 | 120 |
| 2009 | CHC | 82 | 306 | 15 | 65 | .317 | .905 | 121 |
| 2010 | CHC | 124 | 465 | 25 | 83 | .241 | .745 | 102 |
| 2011 | CHC | 149 | 565 | 26 | 93 | .306 | .871 | 121 |
| 2012 | MIL | 149 | 570 | 27 | 105 | .300 | .901 | 124 |
| 2013 | MIL | 92 | 304 | 12 | 49 | .283 | .831 | 116 |
| 2014 | MIL | 133 | 494 | 15 | 66 | .285 | .757 | 108 |
| 2015 | MIL | 137 | 475 | 17 | 75 | .246 | .720 | 100 |
| Career | 2194 | 8136 | 386 | 1417 | .283 | — | — | |
Matchups, projections, comps — grounded in Lahman, Retrosheet, and Statcast.