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Mariners' Rob Refsnyder nightmare may soon be over
Mariners' Rob Refsnyder nightmare may soon be over
Billy HeyenMon, June 8, 2026 at 2:42 PM UTC·2 min readMariners' Rob Refsnyder nightmare may soon be over originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The Seattle Mariners thought they knew what they were getting when they signed Rob Refsnyder in free agency.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementHe's been a proven masher against left-handed pitching. The righty Refsnyder hasn't played much in recent seasons against same-sided arms, but against southpaws, he's been great.
So when the Mariners signed him, they figured he'd be in the lineup every time they faced a left-hander, and that he'd produce on those days.
Instead, Refsnyder has been miserable. He's just 9-for-66 against lefties.
Whatever used to work for Refsnyder in those matchups isn't working right now.
That has Bleacher Report's Kerry Miller believing that Refsnyder could soon be designated for assignment -- which would remove him from the 40-man roster and place him on waivers.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementIt's unlikely a team would claim Refsnyder's contract off waivers, but he could then choose to elect free agency and look for a new club.
"During his four seasons with the Red Sox, Refsnyder was a ridiculously good 'right-handed half of a platoon' option," Miller writes. "We're talking seventh-best OPS vs. LHP from 2022-25 good, his .924 mark slightly better than Mookie Betts' .919. So, the Mariners gave him a one-year, $6.25M contract to pair him primarily with Luke Raley, who has a career .805 OPS vs. RHP and .505 vs. LHP. Except Refsnyder has gone from a one-trick pony to a zero-trick pony, presently 9-for-66 with 23 strikeouts and a .483 OPS against southpaws."
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The annoying part for the Mariners is that there was seemingly no way to predict this. Refsnyder has fallen off a cliff with no obvious explanation.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementBut the reality is that he isn't delivering in the way he was supposed to, and that could eventually cost him his spot on Seattle's roster.
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