In 2001, he was assigned to the Dominican Summer League (DSL) Red Sox where he delivered a strong .345 average with a .533 slugging percentage on 197 at-bats. The following year, 2002, he was brought over to the Rookie Gulf Coast League to play for the GCL Red Sox and see if he could repeat the drubbing that he dealt the DSL pitching.
Hanley did it again, hitting .341 with an SLG of .555. Some of the pitchers that he roughed up in 164 appearances before them would swear it was '666.'
He was promoted to Class A Lowell after 45 games in the GCL to see if the march would continue. Usually this is where most players get a bit of come-uppance and have to take a level-break to adjust and retool. Not Ramirez. He made Spinners coaches and fans heads spin with .371 performance and a .536 slugging percentage and a .400 on-base percentage.
It was time to take Levy Ochoa out to lunch and find him a nice semi-legal Cuban cigar. He was the proud signer of a 6-1, 170 lb. tornado.
Ramirez got another promotion in 2003 that reflected some caution for his age and maturity. He was assigned to the August GreenJackets in the South Atlantic League. It was a good call. He had a slumping, well, for Hanley at least, season with a .275 average and a .403 slugging percentage.
He came roaring back in 2004, though, with a trip to the Sarasota Red Sox in the Florida State League (FSL). He batted .310/.389 SLG in 62 games and 239 at-bats. He was promoted to Portland, where also delivered .310 but knocked his slugging percentage waaay up to .512.
"He can really play this game," said one veteran National League scout. "He's got all the tools."
Which is why so many clubs have tried to pry Ramirez away from the Red Sox, and why the Sox have just as doggedly held on to him.
A deal to send petulant BoSox slugger Manny Ramirez (no relation) to the Mets fell apart, it's believed, because Boston refused to part with their young shortstop phenom. No two Ramirez trade deals.
Hanley has exceptional range, and an equally impressive arm, taking away sure base hits on balls hit into the hole. He has no weak field when he hits. On the D, he had 36 errors in 2003. He knocked down that figure to 20 in 2004. He remains on track this year.
He has unlimited offensive skills, too, with an ability to hit for power or hit for results. Ramirez is just as apt to muscle a 3-2 slider into the opposite field as he is to send a pitcher's mistake over the center field fence.
His numbers coming into this season, his first full stint in Double-A, were glittering. Ramirez' lifetime batting average, covering four pro campaigns, was .314, with an .829 OPS.
He can bad lead off, cleanup or anywhere in between.
Still, there is a possibility that when (and it's a matter of when, not if) Ramirez hits the big leagues, it may not be as a shortstop. After, all, Boston did sign shortstop Edgar Renteria to a rich, four year contract following last year's World Series win.
To that end, Ramirez has seen action at second and third base, and is expected to get some work at center field before too long.
He is unfazed by any of those ideas, saying, "I'm comfortable anywhere. It's just baseball."
Ramirez could have a great sit down with No. 14 Edwin Encarnacion about that philosophy.
We've ranked Hanley in the upper 20 because of his serious mojo in the organization and his incredible production. Unlike the other scouts and touts whose reports we've perused, we don't rank him under five or at the top of his farm system because the buzz says he's going to be brought along at the speed that works for him.
We were so cocky that we'd already readied the inevitable promotion to Pawtucket prior to upload. Wrong. We see him taking a call to Rhode Island some time before the end of this season, with him making his run at the Triple-A perhaps in 2006, or possibly even finding his way to the majors by mid-2006 or earlier if the Winter trades prove productive in clearing space for him.
After clearing up the curse of the Babe, this is not a player that you risk tempting the baseball gods by shipping off to New York.
- Dan Hickling contributed to this ranking.
