Ramírez ended the 2015 season with a .249 batting average and 19 home runs in 401 at-bats, while his defense in left field was rated as the worst in the American League. As a result, on September 1 the Red Sox announced Ramírez would not play left field for the remainder of the season. The Red Sox also announced then that Ramírez would again change positions in 2016 to become their starting first baseman, another position that Ramírez had never played before.