Monday, February 16, 2015

Most Popular Article of the Week: Refsnyder Gets a Shot at Second Base Job in Spring

Rob Refsnyder's chances at the Yankees' starting second base job certainly didn't look too great after the club re-signed Stephen Drew to a one-year/$5-million deal last month, but that doesn't mean they're not still there. 

Refsnyder will still get the opportunity to win the role at spring training, general manager Brian Cashman said Friday.

According to Cashman, Refsnyder isn't the Yankees' top choice for the position yet, but will be given time to develop his defensive skills during camp. Refsnyder, 23, is a converted outfielder struggling to adjust to the infield -- something clearly shown by the recurring issues he had with his glove last season. 

"We're going to see that develop in spring training," Cashman told WFAN radio

Refsnyder batted .318/.387/.497 with 14 home runs and 63 RBI in 137 games last year at Double-A Trenton and Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, but wasn't nearly as good on the other side of the ball. His fielding percentage at the two levels was just .977, and he committed 12 errors. 

Refsnyder will still be considered by the team, though, if Cashman and the Yankees notice improvement. 

"The bottom line is, he'll go into camp, and he'll compete, and he'll have a chance to potentially earn a spot on the roster," Cashman said.

Refsnyder is currently viewed as one of the Yankees' top prospects, and was often talked about by New York's fanbase last season when Brian Roberts was in the midst of his slump. Indeed, many wanted to see Refsnyder brought up to replace the weak-hitting Roberts, a plan Cashman didn't support at the time.

Now, however, the GM seems to be thinking differently. 

"He has a chance to be a regular offensive second baseman," Cashman, referring to Refsnyder, said. 

6 comments:

  1. We had an infielder that had 29 errors in AAA before coming up to the bigs. I think if Refs can hit better
    than Drew play him! Unless his defence is too bad.

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    1. That's Ref's only thing holding him back at this point, his defense. And that's the Yankees fault bouncing him around.

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    2. Yup, they did the same thing with Pirela, only more so! There has to be someone in the organization that doesn't understand footwork is very, very important...Jeter learned that quickly, but they didn't bounce him around. Hell, it took Drew almost half the year to get set at 2nd base. these kids are really working at it and I hope they learned some inside stuff over the winter. I like Pirela for utility player and Refs for 2nd base IF they can hit close to the Farm numbers.

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    3. To be fair though Pirela never MADE the team give him at bats because of his bat. He was always solid but never exploded like Ref did. Pirela was set to be a minor league free agent before Prado needed an appendectomy.

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  2. From what I read, Refsnyder improved by leaps and bounds by the end of the year. I haven't gone back and checked, but I think he made the bulk of his errors at AA.

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    Replies
    1. You are correct he did improve a ton but again, to be fair, he needed more work defensively. It wasn't the errors as much as it was the footwork on double plays and such.

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Sorry for the Capatcha... Blame the Russians :)