Tom Brady has another satisfied customer, it seems.
Hanley Ramirez reported to Fort Myers, Fla., on Friday for Boston Red Sox spring training, three days before the team’s first official workout. He looked a little slimmer, too, claiming he’s dropped 15 pounds over the offseason.
His secret? The “TB12 Method,” of course.
The Red Sox first baseman/designated hitter told reporters Friday he has read Brady’s recently published book, which encourages resistance band usage over traditional weight training and promotes unique diet and lifestyle changes.
“Everything he says in the book and the work he does, it makes a lot of sense,” Ramirez said. “I read his book and it’s working for me.”
Ramirez admitted he hasn’t followed Brady’s regimen to the letter, but he has incorporated more band training, a practice he says he started at the end of last season.
“When you’re young, you need the big muscles to get stronger,” Ramirez said. “When you get in that age past 30, you’ve got to concentrate now on the little muscles. You get that power from the big muscles. When you get hurt, most of the time those little muscles stop working. So, you’ve got to keep working on those little muscles, which is what those bands do. They give you resistance and keep the little muscles working.”
The 34-year-old feels a difference in his hand speed and hips this year, noting his swing seems “effortless.” The Red Sox are hoping that feeling translates into performance after Ramirez’s disappointing 2017 campaign, in which he hit .242 with 23 home runs and just 62 RBIs.
Ramirez even is doing his best to adopt Brady’s famously eccentric diet — although he doesn’t seem to be enjoying it.
“I’ve got a guy that’s been on top of me all year, all season (about my diet),” Ramirez said. “Can’t wait to fire him.”
