After making more history in 2-HR game, J-Ram reminisces on years past

DETROIT -- When you walk down the hall leading to the visiting clubhouse at Comerica Park, the walls are lined with photos of every visiting team over the past decade.

Cleveland’s photo has a young José Ramírez alongside former teammates -- none of whom remain with the team. As he fielded questions from the media after the Guardians’ 8-4 victory over the Tigers on Monday night, the picture hung just over his left shoulder. When he was asked to look up at it and think back to the player he was and compare it to who he is today, just hours after making more history, he couldn’t help but smile.

“I see a lot of youth in that picture,” Ramírez said through team interpreter Agustin Rivero, “but, at the same time, I knew that it was going to be a good career in this organization, and be able to put up the numbers that I put.”

The most recent head-turning number that he put up: 242 career home runs.

The All-Star third baseman blasted two homers against the Tigers to tie Albert Belle for second place on Cleveland’s all-time home run list. He now trails just Jim Thome, who hit 337.

“Albert Belle, that's a big name,” Guardians manager Stephen Vogt said. “So for [Ramírez] to catch him and tie him, I'm not surprised, but it is really cool.”

In typical Ramírez fashion, he didn’t just make history quietly. Not only did this mark his 25th career multi-homer performance (and second of the season), the first long ball was hit 451 feet -- the longest of any of his 250 homers tracked by Statcast (since 2015). And since Ramírez only hit two before the Statcast Era, it seems safe to say this one is definitely the longest of his Major League career.

“It’s insane,” Guardians starter Tanner Bibee said. “You get to watch him play every day. The defense, the offense. He’s a complete player.”

Not even one of Ramírez’s blasts at this year’s Home Run Derby topped this. After he got the offensive party started with an RBI double in the first inning, he unleashed on a changeup over the heart of the plate from Tigers hurler Bryan Sammons and sent it 451 feet at 108.8 mph. If that wasn’t enough, he added a second dinger to the same spot (just a little shallower) in the seventh.

“It's really important [to score early], especially against the Tigers,” Ramírez said. “They've been playing good ball against us during the season, so it's really important when we're able to get ahead early in the game and be able to establish our own game.”

Ramírez ended the night with three hits, two homers and a trio of RBIs -- his seventh three-hit game of the year. His RBI total on the season is up to 85, second in the Majors behind just Aaron Judge’s 99. His 26 homers are the seventh, and he has struck out the 11th fewest times among all qualified hitters.

As if we all needed more convincing, Ramírez did his best to remind everyone that he’s going to forever be one of the best players to ever don a Cleveland uniform.

“It would be hard to overstate what José has meant to our franchise over time and the things he continues to do,” Guardians president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti said. “It's fun to see him continue to check off some of those milestones, and I'm excited to see what's next because he does so many things so well and impacts the game in a variety of ways and we're fortunate to have him.”

Ramírez is currently signed with Cleveland through the 2028 season, the year that he would turn 36 years old. When he was at the beginning of his career, around the time the photo on the wall was taken, he could’ve hoped that this would be his future. But there was no way to know for sure. That destiny was solely in Ramírez’s hands and he made sure it happened.

He now sits at 242 career homers, just 95 shy of Thome’s top mark. Over 12 seasons, he’s found his way to a tie for second place. Will he be able to take over the No. 1 spot before his career in Cleveland comes to an end?

“Just talk to Antonetti,” Ramírez joked, “so he can give me five more years and we can make sure to get those numbers.”