The Blue Jays have acquired infielder/outfielder Rob Refsnyder from the AL East rival Yankees for first baseman Ryan McBroom, according to an announcement from New York.
The 26-year-old Refsnyder had been in limbo since the Yankees designated him for assignment on Wednesday, which came after a disappointing tenure in pinstripes. Refsnyder, whom New York chose in the fifth round of the 2012 draft, collected 262 major league plate appearances with the franchise and batted just .241/.312/.332. On the plus side, Refsnyder garnered big league experience at first, second and in the corner outfield with the Yankees, and he slashed a solid .292/.372/.424 in 1,244 PAs as a member of their Triple-A affiliate. Refsnyder also comes with a minor league option, so the Blue Jays could use him as depth in Toronto or stash him in Triple-A.
McBroom, meanwhile, won’t help solve the Yankees’ issues at first base this year. The 25-year-old hasn’t ascended past Double-A since the Jays took him in the 15th round of the 2014 draft, and his numbers at that level this season aren’t exactly eye-popping. Across 392 PAs, McBroom has batted a less-than-stellar .243/.321/.402. If McBroom carves out a major league future, it’ll likely be as a platoon player, according to MLB.com, which ranked him as the 30th-best prospect in Toronto’s system.
A'sfaninUK
Thank god no more Yankee homers will be putting Refsnyder in trades for actually good players anymore. That was unbearable.
MB923
Upon reading those past ridiculous proposals, some of them were Red Sox fans pretending to be Yankee fans (Goblins, Death and a couple of others).
thegreatcerealfamine
Both Goblins and Death constantly comment on Yankee matters. Couple that with the prospect guru Billy(who’s been absent since Rutherford was traded),it’s been a comical June/July.
MB923
They are both Red Sox fans. Have had arguments/discussions with them in the past on here. Trust me.
Billyballz is indeed a Yankee fan though.
El Duderino
Hard to read trade rumors through the tears.
MB923
Tears of laughter or sorrow?
thegreatcerealfamine
Says he’s been a Yankee fan since 1978,but I have my doubts.
Ironman_4life
At least the Yankees have been around since 78. I was arguing with someone claiming to be a die hard seahawks fan since the 60 s. They became a franshice in 77.
El Duderino
For Billy, it’s tears of sorrow. He swore up and down that Rutherford was the Yankees’ very best prospect, and that he was untouchable on trades.
I imagine he’s been staring at his reflection in a scotch bottle since the trade.
thegreatcerealfamine
Point Dude! lol
riffraff
As a seahawk fan I can attest to the huge surge in bandwagon fans in the past 5 years. That and the ever lovable ” I’ve always liked them they are my second team” types.. There is an internet – look stuff up before you start making claims lol
a37H
That’s hilarious
Bald Vinny
Please be sure to tip your waiters and waitresses. Good night everyone!
majorflaw
And what difference does that sort of impersonation make at a site where it took weeks to get rid of an obvious performance troll like “bigpapi4ever.”
Just engage the serious commenters, ignore or abuse the trolls and help educate the sincere but clue deprived. Much like the rest and remainder of the internets.
MB923
That’s the problem though. Very few ignore the trolls. Seems like half the comments come from ridiculous trade proposals (Ref for Gray) and responses to them.
Chris Sale Amateur Tailor
In some circles he’s still a top 100 prospect
El Duderino
Those are “duck, duck, goose” circles.
ctguy
Anyone who has Refsnyder as a “top 100 prospect” has never seen him play in the majors. He is a mediocre fielder and hits well in the minors. Seems like a good guy and maybe he’ll do better in Toronto.
Kayrall
Just wait for it, I’m sure that there’s more heading to NY. Probably osuna and Stroman.
cj1020
Is there anything you don’t comment on?
LA Sam
Read only reason Jays picked-up Refs was because he’s the main piece Tigers want in return for Verlander, Fullmer deal….stay tuned….
Pilzbrydroboy
Lol
Gunnerson
oh damn, trading smoak ?
Remms12
nothing from nothing means nothing
thegreatcerealfamine
Well that is pretty much what Refsnyder is worth,a 25 year old in AA.
A'sfaninUK
and yet, how many posts did we see people make putting him in packages for Sonny Gray? Hint: one is too many.
Connorsoxfan
I’m a Red Sox fan here, and in fairness as long as he’s a throw in and not a main piece he still holds some value as a former top prospect who is hitting decently in the minors. He shouldn’t be more than like the maybe 4th or 5th piece of the trade though.
User 4245925809
I’d put him along the lines of a former Sox propspect garin ceccini who raked in the lower to mid minors and couldn’t hit a lick above it. it happens to some.
A'sfaninUK
He can’t play defense. He’s a AAAA guy. This is his correct trade value, not a “throw in” in a major deal – btw “throw ins” are usually unranked teenager prospects, not flamed out former hyped prospects.
Connorsoxfan
Yeah, but that occasionally you see a former top prospect kicked in and honestly I was kind of surprised the White Sox didn’t just grab him in the trade that just went down. I was also surprised the Yanks went in division here, I don’t think he turns it around but this is the kind of nightmare move than can come back to haunt teams.
Bald Vinny
Um….. Tyler Clippard was a throw in.
whitemule70
Thank goodness. A reasonable point. Get yourself a beer.
nysoxsam
Clearly he’s far from a top fielder. Toronto though has always looked for hitting first.. Maybe out of NY, he finds his stroke to stick in the bigs. You never know. Once he was DFAed, any perceived value he had was lost.
Michael Chaney
Yankee fans’ expectations: Mike Trout
Yankee fans’ reality: Ryan McBroom
MB923
Yeah….right.
Michael Chaney
*sarcasm font*
Dynasty
Not one Yankee fan had any expectations for Refsnyder.
Michael Chaney
It’s a joke to add to the recurring comments about Yankees fans overhyping Refsnyder. It’s definitely happened before.
MB923
Except 2015 which is when they should have played him instead of signing .180 hitting Stephen Drew.
Michael Chaney
You hit the nail right on the head there
agentx
Yeah, that really should have have been Refsnyder’s time to either shine or fail quickly and hasten the decision to send him packing.
MB923
But that’s completely fair in that case. 22-23 in AAA with a near .850 OPS at a position Not filled. If that was the case with your team , wouldn’t you want to give him a shot instead of signing a 32-33 year old player coming off like a .180 BA season?
MurderersRow27
Yes. This is truth. The Yankees were stupid for signing Drew and not giving Refsnyder a shot at that point.
davidcoonce74
Never quite understood why this guy was ever considered much of a prospect. He’s a classic ‘tweener; not enough glove to play the middle infield, not enough bat to play anywhere else. He’s a utility guy.
thegreatcerealfamine
I’ve seen you post this exact same thing a few times.
koz16
Because at the time the Yankees had Roberts and Drew at 2B and very few real prospects in the minors. Let’s face it – if you’re rooting for a team that is starting Drew and Roberts – and let Cano walk – you hold out hope for any pseudo prospect.
MB923
Check his numbers in AAA from a few years ago. The Scranton Yankees also play in a very friendly pitchers park. It should be noted he was never their top prospect. I think he made it as high as 4th on the team.
nysoxsam
Yes but utility players who can at least hold their own in both the infield and outfield has never been more valuable. Unfortunately he didn’t do enough to stick in the big leagues long enough to force an issue.
MB923
I expect Refs 3rd career HR to be against the Yankees. Former Yankees always kill the Yankees.
I Believe We Can Win
Yankees stocking up on 1B huh- Cooper, Mcbroom. Who’s next Skole of the Nationals, Brett Nicholas of the Rangers? Someone is bound to give them decent production from 1st.
thegreatcerealfamine
They’ll get better production in the playoffs then any Padre!
ray1904
With that payroll! I bet ! We just keep enjoying our beautiful city & whether & people !enjoy your ugly woman, dog size Rats & dirty streets & crappie whether!
MB923
Why attack an entire city (which gets about 50 million tourists a year)?
And hey at least football is coming up and you can see the Charg…..oh wait.
Connorsoxfan
Ha
thegreatcerealfamine
What do we need to whether. Yea we have that one ugly woman,but she’s cool. Have your care giver write this for you next time.
Houston We Have A Solution
New York fan talking football when you have the Jets lol. Most cities would rather not have a football team than be stuck with the Jets.
Never forget Fireman Ed giving up on that team and them begging him to come back lol.
Oh and the buttfumble will never get old.
$100 San Diego gets a new team and they make the playoffs before the Jets do.
thegreatcerealfamine
Or the Padres. Why do you guys do this to yourselves?
MB923
I’m not a Jets fan lmao.
I Believe We Can Win
Don’t think he said you were a Jets fan, just that the NEW YORK JETS are awful and horribly ran.
$5 bucks says Giants fan circa 2007.
Please don’t say Bills fan. Cause thats not much better.
MB923
Giants since mid 90s.
Houston We Have A Solution
Padres will make the playoffs before the Jets find a franchise quarterback.
Dont go buying your bryce petty and christian hackenberg jersies just yet boys.
Raptors Rampage
businessinsider.com/christian-hackenberg-throws-hi…
Huh, Hackenberg fits right in with the NY Yankees pen. Top 10 in walks allowed. Most blown saves. Top 10 in HBP.
Phillies2017
I genuinely believe Tommy Joseph would be a good fit. If you look at his per 162 games on baseball reference, he’s a pretty good 7-hitter and at 25, he is young enough to be an auxiliary piece for the Bombers. What else do they have in the Pipeline besides Bird?
jonnyj
Here we go with yet another first base option for the Yanks….
PedroM
Jay’s management is becoming the laughing stock of MLB. The team they’ve assembled already is.
thesip23
Don’t know how you got that conclusion from this trade…
PedroM
Not specifically from this trade. Just an overall observation.
jimmertee
I agree. I am waiting for something good to come about from Jays Mgmt other than signing Smoak. The Jays have made so many personnel mistakes this year it is scary and I wonder how those in charge are still doing the job. And Shapiro was on the radio the other day saying the Jays can still compete. Hogwash, utter hohwash. Barring bigtime signings for the rotation and the bullpen, the Jays will be worse next year. I am waiting for trades and signing for frontline players not mariginal pieces like Rob Refsunder
jdgoat
Ya lets punish these guys because the former GM traded all their MLB ready guys for rentals and Troy tulowitzki. It’s not their fault the leagues ERA leader and their second most dynamic hitter have been out all year. But I guess some people always need heads rolling for some reason
jimmertee
Oh please, I called this mess in these blogs before spring training started including the “so called” great rotation to take major step back, inlcuding Estrada and Happ. The bullpen was called as crap too, except for Osuna. As for the so called “ready” prospects traded for Tulo, Reyes was and is terrible and had personality problems, Castro was DFa’d, Tinico hasn’t pitched about A level, and that leaves Hoffman and his 5.10 ERA, 65 hits in 65 innings at the MLB level. The Tulo trade wasa great trade and Toronto won that trade [that included Latroy Hawkins] bigtime. AA knew what he had to do to bring a potential winner quickly, not wait around for 14 world seriesless years like Cleveland under Shaprio’s reign. So far all we get from the current Jays Mgmt is fill in pieces, not elite peices.
jimmertee
And if I [and others] can call this Blue Jays mess while Shapiro is calling the Blue Jays “contenders” now and in the immediate future, that tells me that Shapiro has no clue of what he is doing at the MLB level or he is lying to sell tickets. Why? Because this current crop of core Blue Jays will not contend, not now and not next year barring bigtime acquistions or trades. Shapiro can build a great farm system, but to me, he has shown little or no ability at any point in time to be ‘Gillick” like and bring on elite players to get a MLB team over the top, whether it is Toronto or Cleveland. And as I have said before over and over, this team needed some elite players to get it over the top this year. Beware, the next 14 years might be mediocrity.
Iron Mike
Jesus Christ, you really ruin every Jays thread with your same old negative crap. go like another team then
jimmertee
It is not negative crap, it’s real. It’s true. It is what I have mostly called all along that has come true. Do you want a line by line, player by player recap of what I have said that is right-on? Let’s be real and mature about it. And not engage in false kool-aid for the sake of it. And swearing is not necessary. Thank you.
jimmertee
As a former bord dog scout, the goal of my blogging is to call the Jays Mgmt and fans to a higher standard by ignoring the Kool_aid and using my scouting skills, saying what this club really is and what this club really needs to succeed. Otherwise it is all marketing and false hopes. Peronally I get very frustrated by the player evaluations of this club by fans and by the Jays Mgmt thmeselves. For example, my scouting of Vlad Jr is that I see him as a Major League star and you watch, this assessment will be close to correct. On the other hand, I see another highly touted Jay’s prospect, Bichette, and a average or below avergae Major League player. not negative, just good scouting.
TheMichigan
Tulo has been below average for you guys on offense and on defense. Rockies DFAing Castro was an odd move, considering he’s like 22. Trinico still has time to develop.
Hoffman is still a perfect option to understudy Gray as the ace of the Rockies rotation, they just don’t want to rush him through the ranks. Senzatela, Freeland, Gray, Hoffman and Marquez is going to be a great starting 5 for the foreseeable future.
Cosmopotter
The Jays management had almost nothing to do with this team. It is 80% the same as last year. They haven’t had a chance to put their stamp on it yet. They made a good move as Smoak and Morales have outperformed Edwin (who I love) but the team is old and needs to switch it up.
JP8
Anyone can say Vlad Jr will be a star…. He has walked almost exactly as many times as he has struck out during his professional career. Not to mention his dad, yeah great scouting report.
Aidan King
Jimmertee, keep patting yourself on the back their ya false prophet. Did you predict the jays having the most guys on DL by All-Star break as well. You were just one of those fans crying over Edwin and can boast now that everything has gone to crap. Unfortunately our city being crap at sports for so long has bred a bunch of whiner fans like you that always say they will be garbage so you can brag when you are usually right and have some people acknowledge your otherwise worthless opinion.
As for your scouting, if you see Bo being a failure when he has out hit Vlad while being superior in the field, than stick to your day job bud.
Bullet
He was a Yo Yo.. I felt bad for him. He could use a reboot over there in CA.
jaysfan77
Normally I’d hope this was a precursor move by the jays for further trades but I mean, we really don’t have much as far as any veterans, got some good young controllable players but don’t see the sense in trading them this year. Every veteran player we have is having a down year with a big contract.
It’s funny how the fans for years clamoured Rogers is cheap, well, they be spending 160 million this year and here we are, snookered.
stymeedone
Sure it was a precursor trade. Now that Toronto has Ref, They can chose between Trout and Gray in the next deal.
jaysfan77
Hilarious. I think Pearce is likely traded, and this is his replacement, Pearce is likely packaged with Estrada or Smith to get something. With the emergence of Smoak, Pearce is expendable, he’s been hurt but has hit fairly well otherwise, his defence in LF isn’t the greatest however.
Phillies2017
Actually like this deal for both sides.
For the Yanks, it was becoming painfully obvious that Refsnyder had no future in the Bronx. McBroom is listed among the Jays top 30 with a career .280/.343/.459 line. At the very least the Yanks were able to get a potential future bench option out of dead weight.
For the Jays, Refsnyder is a decent lottery ticket. The kid obviously has talent to some extent, maybe a change of Scenery will help.
Honestly, rather surprised the Yanks got McBroom for Refsnyder. There must have been a decent amount of interest on waivers. Its not every day you see a top 30 org guy (even low on the list) traded for a guy who had been DFA’d.
jaysfan77
Inter division trade too maybe I dunno, historically these two haven’t traded much.
Cosmopotter
Agreed. Smoak was years in paying off. refsnyder could be the same.
jimmertee
This Blue Jays team could have been great this year, but was lousy from the last offseason on and should have been either blown up then or reinforced by acquiring elite players. That is what Cashman would have done. Refsynder is going no where. Forget about him “paying off”.
The current Jays Mgmt could have prepared this season but they wrote it off and lied to the fans. How did they write it off? By signing guys like Coglan, Howell, Smith, Grilli, Salty, Maile, promoting Laurence, Valdez, Bolsinger, Campos playing travis and pillar at lead-off.
Many baseball people[including me] knew all these moves were trash in advance and said so. The Mgmt team, sold it as “depth” To say this mgmt team has not put its stamp on the BlueJays is ludacrous. Fans and experts were calling for elite ptiching depth, they did nothing. No,this mgmt team only knows ONE way to build and that is long term banking of prospects without a clue as to how to get a team over the hump to a championship. which guys like Cashman or Gillick could have done easily this year. That Is why I am calling for a change in the Jays leadership.
Take a look at some of the free agents signed in Cleveland uinder Shapiro to get the team over the hump. Bourne, Swisher, Brett Myers, Kerry Wood etc woof woof.and with the Jays the list above. I am angry and sad becuase this didn’t have to happen this year and I am worried since the barn is full of people in the seats, they will continue with the “let’s not take any risks and build for the long term and lie to the fans”, thereby ignoring the fans right now for the foreseeable future.
jaysfan77
I think they were hoping to bridge to when guys in the lower levels in the minors are ready, but it didn’t work out that way.
Larry David's Joe Pepitone Jersey
I guess he won’t be in the Hank Aaron trade.
ExileInLA 2
Nobody tell Joel Sherman how stupid his Duda trade idea was today!
Robertowannabe
Maybe the Jays will turn Refsnyder into a superstar like they did with Bautista. The Bucs traded Joey Bats for a washed up catcher. Nobody in Pittsburgh cared cause Bautista couldn’t hit at all in Pittsburgh.
jimmertee
Lucky if Refsunder makes the jays major league roster for an extended period of time. This seems to be useless depth move.
jayssaskatchewan
McBroom might be useful in September. He can hit LHP and has a good glove at 1B.
pepesilvia
Surprised the Yankees traded this guy within the division… I sure hope they got a sizeable return.