Jose Ramirez opted against surgery to play through thumb injury; will have procedure soon

CLEVELAND — After an MRI in June confirmed that Jose Ramirez had a torn ligament that affected his thumb, it was likely he was headed for surgery. Instead, Ramirez told manager Terry Francona that he wanted to be in the lineup the next day.

Ramirez tore the ulnar collateral ligament, resulting in problems with his right thumb. He's scheduled to undergo surgery on the thumb within the next several weeks. The rehab has been estimated at 6-to-8 weeks and isn't expected to significantly impact his offseason training or his status for the beginning of the 2023 season.

That surgery was an option when the injury first happened while the Guardians were in Los Angeles playing the Dodgers. The star third baseman would have likely missed roughly two months of the season right after the Guardians had gone on a run for first place in the American League Central Division.

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Ramirez wasn't about to miss that race.

"This was all happening when we were in LA. After talking to our medical people, I was under the impression that surgery was probably what was going to happen," Francona said Friday. "They did some more digging. This was during the game, so I wasn't in there. Then after the game, Josey came in with Augie [the team translator] and he said, 'Not only am I not having surgery, but I'm playing tomorrow.'"

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Surgery wasn't necessary at the time because Ramirez was informed by the team's medical staff that playing through the injury wouldn't make it any worse. It was simply a matter of whether he felt he could, or wanted, to play through the injury. That was also why Ramirez was able to participate in the Home Run Derby.

"It was a really candid conversation with Josey," President of Baseball Operations Chris Antonetti said. "The doctors laid out the options, surgical or non-surgical. … Jose cares, as everybody who's ever been around him knows how much he cares about playing and wants to be on the field. It's amazing to think about what he played with from that day forward.

"He'd get treatment on it every day, but he wanted to be out there every day playing. He just as easily [could have] said nope, gonna have surgery then and would have missed the balance of the season at that point."

Cleveland Guardians: Guardians third baseman Jose Ramirez to undergo thumb surgery

Prior to the injury, Ramirez was hitting .305 with a .397 on-base percentage, a 1.039 OPS, 16 home runs, 20 doubles, four triples and 62 RBIs in 60 games. While playing through the thumb issue, Ramirez hit .264 with a .766 OPS, 13 home runs, 24 doubles and 64 RBIs. He then hit .333 with one home run, two doubles and four RBIs in seven postseason games. He wasn't quite the same hitter, but he was certainly still a productive part of the lineup.

"I know people watch him and admire the way he plays," Francona said. "I don't know if people realize quite just how tough a kid he is."

Andres Gimenez played with non-displaced fracture in left thumb

Ramirez wasn't the only one playing through a painful thumb.

Second baseman Andres Gimenez sustained a non-displaced fracture in his left thumb in September, Antonetti said.

The injury won't require surgery.

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In addition, first baseman Josh Naylor, who required major surgery on his right ankle last summer, will be visiting with doctors in Green Bay to "confirm that everything is on track for him and there is no additional intervention needed." Naylor is expected to have a "normal" offseason.

Reliever Nick Sandlin, who strained the teres major muscle in his upper back/shoulder, received a PRP injection this week and will be rehabbing for the next 6-to-8 weeks. It isn't expected to restrict him this spring in any way.

Ryan Lewis can be reached at rlewis@thebeaconjournal.com. Read more about the Guardians at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/cleveland-guardians. Follow him on Twitter at @ByRyanLewis.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Guardians' Jose Ramirez refused surgery, played through injury