Now that the season is over, the crew at Blue Jays from Away will take a look at the Blue Jays one by one and review how each player’s season went, whether he met expectations (or not) and look at how he fits into (what we think of) the Blue Jays’ plans going forward.
Rob Refsnyder began the 2017 season with the Yankees. The Blue Jays acquired the 26-year-old infielder at the end of July for minor leaguer Ryan McBroom. He was initially assigned to the Bisons, but was called up on July 29th after Troy Tulowitzki was injured, and stayed with the big-league club for the duration of the season.
Refsnyder’s first hit with his new team (and his only extra-base hit) was a double, in his second game, on July 30th. He also took a walk that day. He started a few more games at the beginning of August, but only collected one more hit and two walks across the first 16 at-bats of the month. Against the Pirates on August 11th, he went 0-for-4 with four strikeouts. He rebounded the next day to go 3-for-4.
Manager John Gibbons started the right-handed Refsnyder against lefty pitching, but got into the habit of pulling him once the starting pitcher left the game. Other times Refsnyder was used as a pinch-runner, or entered the game defensively in place of someone who’d already been pinch-hit for. He batted .212/.297/.212 in 33 at-bats in August with 5 strikeouts, 3 walks, and two stolen bases.
With roster expansion in September, Refsnyder saw even less playing time. He had just 12 at-bats over 11 games, and never had more than two plate appearances in a game. On September 5th, during a 19-inning game in Boston, Refsnyder was thrown out stealing as the third out of the top of the 18th inning. It was the only time he would be thrown out all year. He only collected two hits (both singles) in September, for a batting average and slugging percentage of .167, and walked three times for an OBP of .231.
Refsnyder hit .196/.281/.216 in 51 at-bats with the Jays. He also struck out 9 times and walked 5, for a BB/K ratio of 0.56. Defensively, he was all over the field. He played 111 innings at second base, 4 innings split over two games at first base, 4 innings in left field over two games, and one full game in right field. He made three errors while at second base, for a fielding percentage of .957 at the position. He also turned eight double plays as a second baseman. He was error-free in three total chances in the outfield (all came in right) and was never required to make a play at first.
Contract Status:
Refsnyder is no longer with Toronto. He was claimed off waivers by Cleveland on November 20th.
Regular Season Grades:
Jay Blue: Incomplete
Emily: D (Small Sample Size)
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