Skip to content

Knee injury could force Ramos to sign with AL team for 2017

Brad Mills / Reuters

Not only did Wilson Ramos' torn ACL cut his season short one week before the postseason, it could dramatically alter his free-agent market this winter.

The Washington Nationals catcher acknowledged Thursday that following the injury, he's unsure if he'll be able to catch next season, potentially limiting his options to solely American League teams as a designated hitter.

"Unfortunately, this injury happened so close to the end and it may affect whether I'm able to stay with a National League team or not," Ramos told reporters. "But if it's up to me, I definitely would like to keep playing for the Nationals and play as long as I can."

Ramos, who avoided arbitration with a one-year, $5.35-million deal in January, couldn't have picked a worse time to suffer the injury. Washington had just locked up the NL East division and he'd been enjoying a career year, set to hit free agency as one of the top catching options.

In 131 games, the first-time All-Star hit .307/.354/.486 with 22 home runs and 25 doubles.

Daily Newsletter

Get the latest trending sports news daily in your inbox