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Rob Refsnyder made an impact with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre last season, hitting over .300 with eight home runs and 33 RBI in just 77 games.
As he starts his second season with the RailRiders, the 24-year-old was a big hit with fans and the entire organization for his all-out style of play in addition to his consistency at the plate.
“Excited to be back,” he said. “From the time I was here last year, the fans were awesome and there’s a lot of familiar faces. So it’s nice to be back and being in Scranton.”
He then took his game to Major League spring training and was there until camp’s conclusion nearly earning a roster spot thanks to his .364 batting average, the highest of any Yankee with at least 40 spring at-bats.
“Any time you’re in camp, your goal is to make the Major Leagues so I don’t know how close or how far (from making the team),” Refsnyder said. “I just went about my business and tried to get better everyday. I definitely got better for sure.”
Refsnyder was a prime candidate for a reserve second base role with New York due to injuries to Brendan Ryan and Jose Pirela. But the Yankees acquired infielder Gregorio Petit from Houston and added him to the roster.
Refsnyder’s performance certainly didn’t go unnoticed. A combination of his stats from last year and his torrid spring led to RailRiders manager Dave Miley naming the second baseman as the No. 3 hitter in a lineup that could be scary when peaking.
“Talk about a guy who came up here and hit .300 on this level … he doesn’t give at-bats away,” Miley said. “When I started thinking about a lineup a couple weeks ago during spring training, he was the name that wasn’t even a hesitation to put in the three hole. There is some comfort there knowing what you’re gonna get on a daily basis and gives grind out at-bats.”
Refsnyder was humbled to learn about hitting in the premier slot in the order.
“Batting third is an honor. It’s something I don’t take lightly so I’m looking forward to the challenge and this lineup’s gonna be great,” he said. “There’s a lot of good power guys, on base guys. So I think the lineup’s gonna be complex, but I think we’re going to be ready to go.”
Some reports from around the organization noted that Refsnyder needed to work more on his defense at second base before he could get called up. Refsnyder made a Major League-high six errors during spring training on just 44 total chances for a fielding percentage of just .864.
In contrast, Refsnyder made just three errors in 245 chances last season for the RailRiders while playing second base. However, on the flip side, while manning the right side of the infield for Double-A Trenton in 2014, he committed nine errors in 283 chances. Drafted as a right fielder, he’s been playing second base since 2013 and his errors have gone down each year since.
He’s not just focusing on improving his defensive skills while with SWB, he’s looking to get better in every aspect of his game.
“I’ve never played in a Major League game so I don’t know what to expect. So I think all facets of my game need to be getting better and if it’s not getting better it’s getting worse in my opinion,” he said. “I’m gonna go about my business. I got my routine, so I’m just gonna go about that every day. There’s not one thing I’m really focusing on.”
Surely all eyes will be focused on him and what the organization hopes is its next superstar.