CLEVELAND — Jose Ramirez sure knows how to make a return.
A month to the day after Ramirez went on the injured list to undergo surgery to repair a broken bone in his right hand, he was activated and made a “grand” return to the Cleveland Indians’ lineup against the Chicago White Sox Tuesday night.
In the top of the first inning, the Indians mounted a two-out rally and Ramirez cleared the bases when he belted a Carson Fulmer offering into the seats beyond the right field wall at Guaranteed Rate Field in Chicago for a grand slam in his first at-bat since returning from the injured list.
Ramirez’s grand slam was his 21st home run of the season, and after his teammates celebrated as he trotted around the bases, they took it easy on him in the dugout and were very cautious with the high fives to the surgically repaired right hand.
The Indians set up Ramirez for the memorable return when first baseman Carlos Santana drew a four-pitch walk and moved into scoring position when right fielder Yasiel Puig hit a single into right. Left fielder Jordan Luplow loaded the bases with a walk.
And Ramirez was not done with the dramatics either, as he put a second home run over the wall, this time into left field while hitting from the other side of the plate in the third inning.
After Puig doubled to the wall in left field and Luplow drew his second walk in as many at-bats, Ramirez swung at the first pitch from reliever Hector Santiago and drove it well over the wall and into the seats in left.
The 416-foot blast gave Ramirez a career-high seven runs batted in for the game.
Ramirez gave the Indians a 4-0 lead before the White Sox ever came to bat and with front-of-the-rotation starting pitcher Mike Clevinger on the mound looking to keep Cleveland in the race for one of the two American League Wildcard spots.
Currently, the Indians trail the Tampa Bay Rays by a half-game for the second Wildcard spot.