CLEVELAND -- Cleveland Indians manager Terry Francona refuted a report out of the Dominican Republic that stated infielder Jose Ramirez had tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs and was awaiting an 80-game suspension from Major League Baseball.
The report began to surface Tuesday, but Francona maintained the innocence of his star third baseman, who is among the American League leaders in home runs through the first 52 games of the 2018 regular season.
“We talked to Jose, actually just a couple minutes ago, and he got a big kick out of it,” Francona said prior to tonight’s game against the Chicago White Sox at Progressive Field.
“One, Jose strenuously said, ‘There’s nothing.’ The other thing that’s probably every bit as important, when somebody tests positive, the league informs us, and they haven’t.”
PHOTOS: Cleveland Indians refute report that Jose Ramirez tested positive for PEDs
Following Francona’s media session, Indians President Chris Antonetti confirmed MLB Offices informed the organization that Ramirez would not be facing a suspension.
“It’s a shame that we have to address this,” Francona said. “There’s really no more to address because we don’t know more. Literally, we found out 10 minutes ago, but we would’ve known from the league and we don’t, so there’s nothing there.”
Entering tonight’s game against the White Sox, Ramirez has 58 hits in 199 at-bats (.291 batting average) with 35 runs scored, 37 RBI, 16 doubles and 15 home runs with 30 walks against 23 strikeouts and seven stole bases in nine attempts.
Ramirez is tied for second on the team in at-bats and hits, second in runs scored, doubles, on-base and slugging percentages, as well as first in home runs, RBI and walks.
Ramirez’s 15 home runs rank him tied for fifth in all of Major League Baseball.
Ramirez entered the 2018 season after a career year in 2017, one in which he collected 174 hits, including 27 home runs and a Major League-best 51 doubles, drove in 76 runs, scored another 98 and had a .315 batting average.
A native of Bani, Dominican Republic, the 5-foot-9, 190-pound Ramirez got 21 hits in 37 at-bats over a seven-day period in late June and raised his batting average by 36 points. Ramirez smacked 10 doubles, one triple and three home runs with seven RBI and 12 runs scored, all while leading the Indians to a six-game winning streak during the same stretch.
Ramirez had at least one double in seven straight games, including multiple two-base hits in three of five games.
In the first 79 games of the 2017 season, Ramirez collected 99 hits in 305 at-bats (.325 batting average), including 45 for extra bases (26 doubles, four triples, 15 home runs). Ramirez drove in 42 runs, scored 59 and drew 27 walks against only 39 strikeouts.
Ramirez earned recognition for his efforts by getting the start for the American League in the 2017 Major League Baseball All-Star Game at Marlins Park in Miami, Florida, where he went two for two with a pair of singles.
During the Indians’ American League-record 22-game winning streak last August/September, Ramirez smacked 30 hits, including 11 doubles, one triple and eight home runs, in 71 at-bats with 17 runs scored, a .460 on-base percentage and .944 slugging percentage.
For his efforts at third base, Ramirez was a finalist for the 2017 AL Gold Glove Award.
