Pedro Ramos

Pedro ("Pete") Ramos Guerra (born April 28, 1935) is a Cuban former professional baseball pitcher, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Washington Senators / Minnesota Twins, Cleveland Indians, New York Yankees, and the expansion Washington Senators, all of the American League (AL), and the Philadelphia Phillies, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Cincinnati Reds, all of the National League (NL), over the course of a 15-year career (–; –). Ramos was elected to the AL All-Star team in . He led the league in losses four times, in (18), 1959 (19), (18), and (20). On April 11, 1961, the first game for the newly relocated Twins, Ramos was the winning pitcher, when the team defeated the Yankees, 6–0, at Yankee Stadium.

Early life Ramos was born on April 28, 1935, in Pinar del Rio, Cuba. He worked on his father’s tobacco farm as a teenager. He played Cuban amateur baseball as a teenager. At 17, he was signed by legendary scout Joe Cambria to play for the Washington Senators.

Baseball career

Minor leagues In 1953, at only 18 years old, Ramos pitched for the Class D Morristown Red Sox of the Mountain States League. He pitched in 33 games, starting five, with a 7–6 record and 6.26 earned run average (ERA). He pitched only one more year in the American minor leagues before joining the Washington Senators in 1955.

Major leagues

Washington Senators/Minnesota Twins In 1955, Ramos began his major league career with the Senators, knowing no English, which he learned by watching cowboy movies. He played on the team from 1955-1960, and moved with the team to Minnesota, when it became the Minnesota Twins in 1961. From 1955-59 the Senators never won more than 63 games in a season and finished in last place four times. They won only 73 games in 1960 (5th place) and 70 games in their first year as the Minnesota Twins (7th place). Ramos started the Twins very first game, pitching a shutout win over the Yankees and Whitey Ford.

In 1955, as a 20 year old who never played above Class B baseball, Ramos pitched in 45 games, starting nine. He finished the season with a 5–11 record, 3.88 ERA and five saves. In 1960, his 3.45 ERA was 25th best in both leagues, but his loss total (18) was tied for second worst in all of baseball among over 200 pitchers. In 1961, his 3.95 ERA was 47th in both leagues, but his loss total the worst in both leagues among over 200 pitchers.

Cleveland Indians On April 2, 1962, the Twins traded Ramos to Cleveland Indians in exchange for Vic Power and Dick Stigman. In his first year with Cleveland he had a 10–12 record with a 3.75 ERA. The team finished the year with an 80–82 record, in 6th place. His ERA was 36th best in all of baseball, and his losses were tied for 34th worst in the major leagues among over 200 pitchers. In 1963 for Cleveland, he had a 9–8 record, his first winning record since 1956, and a career-low 3.12 ERA as a starter. A starter most of his career, Ramos became an unexpected sensation in September 1964 after 13 appearances for the Yankees, all in relief. Ramos saved eight games, won a game, and posted a 1.25 ERA as the Yankees barely held off the Chicago White Sox and Baltimore Orioles down the pennant stretch. In 21 innings, Ramos struck out 21 batters and walked none. Because the trade came after August 31, Ramos was not eligible to pitch in the World Series, which New York lost in seven games to the Bob Gibson-led St. Louis Cardinals. His Yankee teammates still voted that he get one-half of a player's share of their World Series earnings.

Legacy As a Senator, in his second big-league season, Ramos surrendered one of the more memorable home runs in the career of Yankees slugger Mickey Mantle. On May 30, 1956, Mantle tore into a Ramos pitch and nearly drove it out of Yankee Stadium, hitting the facade of the top deck in right field. In their heyday, Ramos and Mantle were considered among the fastest runners in the major leagues. Mantle and Ramos raced with Ramos stumbling at the start, Mantle winning. The New York Times reported, however, that while Ramos repeatedly challenged Mantle to a footrace, Mantle declined, seeing no upside.

Ramos also had a notable career pitching in the Cuban Winter League.