WASHINGTON ¨C Keibert Ruiz wanted to show his offensive struggles in 2024 were not reflective of the player he could be this season.
After his batting average dropped to .229 and his OPS fell to .619 last year, Ruiz reported to Spring Training determined to turn those numbers around.
In the Nationals' first two games of the season, Ruiz has wasted no time implementing those improvements.
Ruiz homered on Opening Day and again in Saturday's 11-6 loss to the Phillies at Nationals Park, becoming only the second player in team history (2005-present) to do so. Trea Turner accomplished the feat in 2021.
¡°He¡¯s really staying behind the ball really well,¡± said manager Dave Martinez. ¡°He¡¯s not jumping at the ball. He¡¯s getting the ball in the zone, and when he hits the ball in the zone, he¡¯s really good -- and he hits the ball hard.¡±
Ruiz faced 2024 National League Cy Young Award runner-up Zack Wheeler on Opening Day. The fifth-inning matchup turned into a memorable battle.
Ruiz went up 3-0 on the count. He took strike one, only to then foul off a remarkable seven pitches before doing his damage. On the 12th pitch of that at-bat, Ruiz lifted a 96.1 mph fastball just inside the zone a Statcast-projected 371 feet to right field.
¡°It was a long at-bat,¡± Ruiz said. ¡°I was competing. Then, I won -- and I was happy about that.¡±
Ruiz began the season by going 2-for-4 with his first home run since Sept. 3, 2024. He was the first Nationals catcher in team history (2005-present) to go yard on Opening Day.
¡°To do that, it¡¯s amazing as it is,¡± Martinez said. ¡°But to face [Wheeler] like that, what an incredible at-bat. Then, to get a ball up in the zone and drive it like he did, it was great.¡±
Ruiz also threw out his first base runner of the year in the opener, catching Kyle Schwarber attempting to steal second base. Last season, Ruiz had just a 19.8% caught stealing rate.
¡°It¡¯s really nice to see good things happen,¡± said Opening Day starter MacKenzie Gore. ¡°You could be as confident as you want, but when things do happen well, it builds it a lot. Him throwing out a guy -- I¡¯m sure he heard about it a lot in his career -- and it¡¯s a great way to start the season. Obviously, hitting the homer was great. He was dialed in behind the plate.¡±
The Nationals were off on Friday, but Ruiz built on that momentum Saturday.
He entered the game 5-for-12 with a double and two RBIs against southpaw Jes¨²s Luzardo, whom he had faced during Luzardo¡¯s time with the Marlins. Ruiz displayed familiarity with the matchup. He crushed a 1-0 changeup a Statcast-projected 414 feet to left-center field with a 101.6 mph exit velocity, one of the few blemishes in Luzardo¡¯s 11-strikeout day.
The distance tied the fifth-longest home run of Ruiz's career.
¡°The only bad pitch [Luzardo] made probably was the changeup to Ruiz,¡± said Phillies manager Rob Thomson. ¡°He just missed. He just kind of yanked it -- down and in to the sweet spot. He golfed it out of there.¡±
Ruiz had not homered in back-to-back games since Aug. 11-12, 2023, vs. the Athletics. Nearly a year and a half later, he is reestablishing the offensive consistency he strived toward this offseason.
¡°He worked so hard over the winter [and] during spring. He really wants to get off to a good start,¡± Martinez said. ¡°My big thing with him is not to put that much pressure on him. Just go out there and play. He did the work.¡±