Horacio Ramírez

Horacio Ramírez (born November 24, 1979) is a Mexican-American former baseball pitcher. His parents emigrated from Jalostotitlán, Jalisco, México. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Atlanta Braves, Seattle Mariners, Chicago White Sox and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim and in the KBO League for the Kia Tigers.

Atlanta Braves
Ramírez made his debut for the Atlanta Braves in 2003, when he finished the season 12–4 with a 4.00 ERA in 29 starts. At the end of his rookie season, he was selected to the Baseball Digest All-Star Rookie team. He got off to an excellent start in 2004, posting a 2–4 with a 2.28 ERA in his first nine starts, before he suffered a shoulder injury and was placed on the disabled list on May 30. While initially thought to be a minor injury, Ramírez was not activated until September 26.

In 2005, Ramírez finished with a record of 11–9 and an ERA of 4.63 in 33 games (32 starts), pitching over 200 innings for the first time in his career. He remained in the Braves' rotation in 2006 as the number 3 starter, going 5–5 with a 4.48 ERA in 14 starts.

Seattle Mariners
On December 6, 2006, the Braves traded Ramírez to the Seattle Mariners for right-handed relief pitcher, Rafael Soriano. In his lone season with Seattle, he posted a record of 8–7, but had an ERA of 7.16 in 20 starts.

On March 12, 2008, Ramírez was released by the Mariners.

Kansas City Royals
On May 21, 2008, Ramírez signed a minor league deal with the Kansas City Royals. He pitched in 15 games for the Royals out of the bullpen, going 1–1 with a 2.59 ERA.

Chicago White Sox
On August 9, 2008, Ramírez was traded to the Chicago White Sox for outfielder Paulo Orlando. He became a free agent following the season.

Kansas City Royals
On December 11, 2008, Ramírez signed a one-year deal with the Kansas City Royals. On June 6, he was designated for assignment by the Royals.

Washington Nationals
After his release from Kansas City, on June 15, 2009, Ramírez signed a minor league deal with the Washington Nationals. He became a free agent on November 9.

San Francisco Giants
On February 1, 2010, Ramírez signed a minor league contract with the San Francisco Giants. He became a free agent following the season on November 6.

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
On March 11, 2011, Ramírez signed a minor league deal with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. On July 20, 2011, the Angels purchased Ramírez's contract. He worked out of the bullpen once again but was not effective, going 1–0 while allowing 16 hits in nine innings and recording a 6.00 ERA in 12 games. He became a free agent after the season.

Kia Tigers
On February 20, 2012, Ramírez signed with Kia Tigers of the Korea Baseball Organization. He was released on June 5, 2012.

Lancaster Barnstormers
On June 15, 2012, Ramírez signed with the Lancaster Barnstormers of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. In 12 games (6 starts) 36.2 innings he went 2-0 with a 1.96 ERA and 22 strikeouts.

Chicago Cubs
On August 17, 2012, Ramirez signed with the Chicago Cubs after being released by the Kia Tigers. He elected free agency after the season on November 2.

World Baseball Classic
On January 18, 2013, Ramirez was part of the Mexico roster in the World Baseball Classic.

Lancaster Barnstormers (second stint)
On May 11, 2013, Ramirez signed with the Lancaster Barnstormers of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. In 9 games (8 starts) 48.2 innings he went 5-1 with a 3.51 ERA and 35 strikeouts.

Tigres de Quintan Roo
On July 5, 2013, Ramirez signed with the Tigres de Quintana Roo of the Mexican League. In 6 starts 40 innings he went 3-2 with a 3.38 ERA and 24 strikeouts.

Return to Atlanta Braves as a coach
On March 10, 2014, the Braves announced that Ramirez would be joining their coaching staff as a coaching assistant. He was brought on to assist the coaching staff with on-field duties prior to games and manage the Braves instant replay protocol from an off-field location during games.

Toros de Tijuana
On March 5, 2016, Ramírez began a professional comeback signed with the Toros de Tijuana of the Mexican Baseball League. Starting 21 games for Tijuana, he logged a 6-4 record and 4.15 ERA with 49 strikeouts in 102.0 innings pitched. In 2017, Ramírez started 11 games, posting a 4-3 record and 4.06 ERA with 25 strikeouts in 62.0 innings of work. He started 12 games, appearing in 16, for Tijuana the following year, recording a 3-2 record and 3.94 ERA with 28 strikeouts in 64.0 innings pitched.

For the 2019 season, Ramírez made 32 appearances for the Toros, pitching to a 4-0 record and 2.60 ERA with 9 strikeouts in 34.2 innings of work. He did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the LMB season because of the COVID-19 pandemic. On June 8, 2021, Ramírez re-signed with the Toros. He made 12 appearances (10 starts) for Tijuana in 2021, working to a 3-3 record and 4.50 ERA with 17 strikeouts in 50.0 innings pitched. He did not play in a game for the team in 2022 and was released on January 19, 2023.

Coaching career
In 2023, Ramírez was announced as the bullpen coach for Team México in the 2023 World Baseball Classic.

On January 25, 2024, Ramírez was named the bullpen coach for the FCL Braves for the 2024 season.