Jose Ramirez Trade Rumors: Cleveland Not Engaged in Active Talks; Asking Price High

It doesn't appear as if Cleveland is on the verge of moving third baseman Jose Ramirez prior to Friday's trade deadline.

According to Jon Morosi of MLB Network, teams are not holding "active talks" regarding the slugger, whose asking price is "extremely high."

One reason the price is so high is that Ramirez's contract features "affordable team options for 2022 and 2023, so the club could wait until the offseason to move him."

Spotrac notes Cleveland has a club option of $12 million in base salary for Ramirez in 2022 and $14 million in base salary in 2023.

The team is also still in the playoff race despite being nine games behind the Chicago White Sox in the American League Central. It is five games behind the Oakland Athletics in the battle for the final AL wild-card spot but would also have to overcome the Seattle Mariners, New York Yankees and Toronto Blue Jays.

There is plenty to like about Ramirez, who is a three-time All-Star and three-time Silver Slugger and just 28 years old with multiple seasons of team control compared to other trade options who would be pure rentals.

He is slashing .252/.342/.511 with 20 home runs and 57 RBI this season and is not far removed from when he launched 39 long balls in 2018.

Ramirez has also spent his entire major league career with Cleveland, and the team doesn't seem to be in a hurry to change that.