Rockies rumored to have signed AJ Ramos

Yesterday, ESPN’s Jesse Rogers reported that the Rockies have signed free-agent relief pitcher AJ Ramos to (presumably) a minor-league deal:

Ramos, 33, was released by the Cub on Thursday.

He was drafted by the Marlins in the 21st round of the 2009 draft. In 2012, he had his best year with the Marlins when he debuted and earned a below-3.00 ERA. Between 2014-16, he threw more than 64 innings per season and earned 92 of his 99 career saves. He was an All-Star in 2016.

Ramos began to struggle in 2017 when he was acquired by the Mets and ensured a career-worst 2018 before undergoing shoulder surgery to repair a torn labrum. He has not pitched at the Major League level since the procedure.

Over the past three months, Ramos has attempted a comeback with the Dodgers and Cubs, but did not find success with either team.

On August 18, according to reports:

“A.J. [sic] is continuing to progress and build up arm strength,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “We’ve been doing a lot of things as far as back-to-back, he’s been throwing a lot, consistently throwing ‘pens, and absolutely if the situation calls for it, we have complete trust in him.”

After being released by the Dodgers, he was signed by the Cubs on August 30 before being released on September 3.

In signing with the Rockies, Ramos has the potential to contribute to the next-to-worst bullpen in baseball with an ERA of 6.58. (Last night’s game against the Dodgers provides a recent illustration of how bad the Rockies’ bullpen is.)

This move occurred on the same day that Jon Gray went on the IL and Jose Mujica was called up.

Update: The Rockies confirmed today that they have signed AJ Ramos to a minor-league contract and added to the 60-man player pool.