Who will guide the 'best rotation in baseball'?

VIERA, Fla. – The addition of Max Scherzer to what was the best rotation in baseball last season has left the Washington Nationals with five top-notch candidates to start on Opening Day – and 15-game winner Tanner Roark relegated to a bullpen role.The player mainly responsible for catching such an elite staff is known less for his baseball exploits than for being abducted in his homeland.

Wilson Ramos is determined to change that this season.

The sixth-year catcher from Venezuela has been a consistent run producer when healthy, but has not played in 100 games since 2011 as a series of injuries – to a knee, hamate and twice his hamstrings – turned him into a part-time player. Ramos sought to remedy that by changing his workout program in the offseason, emphasizing agility and flexibility in his legs.

Being tasked with guiding what he calls "the best rotation in baseball'' – a group that includes Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg, Jordan Zimmermann, Gio Gonzalez and Doug Fister – Ramos wants to catch at least 120 games for the first time in his career.

"It's a big responsibility for me to handle this pitching staff,'' he said, "but I feel strong mentally and physically to do it.''

Having tuned up his body – he was already strong but needed to get more limber – Ramos is also becoming more assertive behind the plate. After Thursday's scoreless tie against the Detroit Tigers, Gonzalez lauded Ramos for his game-calling, part of which involved insisting on a particular pitch a few times even after Gonzalez shook him off.

The results were favorable, which bolstered the trust that already exists between them.

"He looks more in sync, more like he's ready to go 100 percent,'' Gonzalez said. "He looks like he's done this for 15 years already, with the right mind-set of taking the bull by the horns. To me it seems like Ramos is showing them, 'Hey, I can lead this rotation.'''

To that end, Ramos relies on the mental book on hitters he has compiled over the years and on the advice he received from Ivan Rodriguez, the 14-time All-Star who was his teammate in 2010 and 2011. Rodriguez preached calmness behind the plate and getting to know his pitchers and what makes them tick.

Ramos' latest project is Scherzer, the 2013 AL Cy Young Award winner who signed a seven-year, $210 million contract with Washington after five seasons with the Detroit Tigers. They have worked together for two games and several bullpen sessions, and Scherzer has already earned his catcher's endorsement.

While manager Matt Williams is holding off on announcing an Opening Day starter – Strasburg and Scherzer seem like the leading candidates, although Zimmermann merits consideration and Fister led the rotation in ERA last season – Ramos did not entirely dodge the question of who was the staff ace.

"They're all different and all have their own repertoire. I like how all of them pitch,'' said Ramos, 27. "To me, Max Scherzer would be a good candidate to pitch on Opening Day because of his experience.''

Gonzalez calls Ramos an "all-around package'' as a catcher when he's healthy. Defensive metrics rank Ramos in the middle of the pack as a pitch framer and above-average as a thrower, having caught 37.5% of would-be base stealers last season.

He's more experienced in the majors than backups Jose Lobaton and Sandy Leon, and also a more potent offensive force. Ramos reached double figures in home runs in three of the last four seasons – he played in only 25 games in the other one – and belted 16 with a .777 OPS in 2013.

"He can be one of the premier offensive catchers in the game,'' Williams said. "If he can play on an everyday-type basis, he can put up special numbers from the catching position.''

Maybe then Ramos would be recognized by the casual fan as more than the player who endured a horrific ordeal in November 2011, when he had to be rescued by Venezuelan authorities in an air operation after being kidnapped at gunpoint in his native state of Carabobo.

The first word that comes up when typing his name on a Google search is "kidnapped.'' Ramos would prefer another term more reflective of what he has accomplished.

"I'd like for people to see me as a baseball figure,'' he said, "not as the person who lived through such a difficult moment.''

A full season shepherding the top rotation in baseball would be a step in that direction.