Can’t. Stop. Watching.
Can’t. Stop. Watching.
Rob Refsnyder is making the most of the Twins’ outfield injury situation. Stud center fielder Byron Buxton was placed on the injured list on May 7 with a hip strain and his replacement, Jake Cave, landed on the IL a week later with a fracture in his back. That opened the door for Refsnyder, a 30-year-old utility player who before this year had played parts of five major league seasons.
Refsnyder has been tearing it up at the plate since his call-up. He’s batted .320/.364/.500 in 16 games and has played some pretty good defense. But he had played only 14 games as a pro in center field before his promotion, so he’s still getting the hang of his new position.
In Sunday’s game against the Orioles, Refsnyder’s unfamiliarity in center gave us a blooper for the ages. After Ryan Mountcastle sent a towering shot to deep center, Refsnyder tracked the ball back toward the fence—and he kept on tracking it until he bounced off the wall.
It’s impossible to say how many times I’ve watched that clip since Sunday afternoon. Even before I decided to lead Hot Clicks with it, I’d let it loop endlessly. It’s a perfect blooper. Refsnyder looks so confident as he attempts to judge whether he can leap and bring the ball back over the fence. The way he caroms off the wall and rolls when he hits the ground is fantastic.
It’s a completely routine baseball play that suddenly becomes a classic bit of slapstick comedy. And it’s perfectly acceptable to laugh at him because he was not injured. He was able to bounce back on his feet with only a bruised ego.
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Email dan.gartland@si.com with any feedback or follow me on Twitter for approximately one half-decent baseball joke per week. Bookmark this page to see previous editions of Hot Clicks and find the newest edition every day. By popular request I’ve made a Spotify playlist of the music featured here. Visit our Extra Mustard page throughout each day for more offbeat sports stories.