REF GOING AT FENWAY
Rookie may be second coming
BOSTON — A decade ago, the Yankees decided their second base situation was untenable, so they made a brash move by replacing veteran Tony Womack with an unproven prospect named Robinson Cano.
If Saturday’s move to bring Rob Refsnyder up from Triple-A works out anything like that did, the Yankees will have officially started their next youth movement.
Refsnyder’s debut was uneventful as he went 0-for-3 in the Yankees’ 5-3 loss to the Red Sox Saturday night, but the 24-year-old second baseman looked comfortable in his first major-league game.
“It was quite an experience,” Refsnyder said. “I would have liked to have gotten a hit and helped the team win, but it’s something I’ll remember for the rest of my life.”
Refsnyder saw his name in the No. 9 spot on the lineup card when he arrived at the ballpark, calling it “the best batting nine-hole I’ve ever seen.”
Joe Girardi liked what he saw from Refsnyder during spring training, although the club thought he “was still somewhat a work in progress” who needed more reps at second base to tighten up his defense. That defense was a major problem for him early in the minor-league season, which he attributed to being too passive in the field instead of remaining aggressive. “I was trying to be perfect and not make mistakes,” Refsnyder said. “You can’t play baseball, especially you can’t play second base that way.”
After committing 11 errors during the first six weeks of the season, Refsnyder has made only two of them since May 23.
The second baseman handled both balls that were hit to him and helped turn a 5-4-3 double play, although he was unable to get out of the way of a Pablo Sandoval slide in the eighth on another potential double-play ball.
“He did fine,” Girardi said. “Everything — his defense, his at-bats. I was OK with everything.”
As he stood by his locker a few hours before first pitch, Refsnyder admitted he would likely have some nerves Saturday night. Afterward, he deadpanned: “I wasn’t nervous at all. Just kidding.”
Catcher John Ryan Murphy, who has known Refsnyder since he was drafted, showed him around Fenway Park before batting practice.
“I sat in the dugout a little bit and just soaked it in,” Refsnyder said. “A really special moment.”
Refsnyder grounded into a 4-63 double play in the third, then hit a sinking liner to right field in the sixth that looked to be his first hit — until Alejandro De Aza made a diving catch to keep him hitless.
“I got blocked out by (Mike) Napoli so I couldn’t really see the ball,” Refsnyder said. “But I heard the reaction from the crowd and that was enough to kind of let that settle in.”
In the eighth, he hit a pop-up to first base in his final at-bat.
Refsnyder started instead of primary second baseman Stephen Drew, who is hitting .182/.257/.372 with 12 home runs and 25 RBI in 78 games.
Refsnyder posted similar splits against righties (.800 OPS) and lefties (.798 OPS), so while Girardi isn’t ready to name the rookie as his full-time second baseman the way Joe Torre did with Cano a decade ago, he wouldn’t rule any scenario out, either.
“Let’s just see how he does and get his feet wet before we try to figure out how we’re going to use him,” Girardi said.
“Are we naming him our second baseman? No. He’s been called up and he’s going to play against these lefthanders and we’re going to see where we’re at.”
Girardi informed Drew after Friday night’s game that Refsnyder was on his way to Boston and would play against the two lefties this weekend, after which the Yanks would “regroup after the break.”
“I think anything’s possible here,” Girardi said. “If you produce, you’re going to play. That’s the bottom line.”