The Boston Red Sox stated that outfielder Rob Refsnyder left Sunday’s game against the Minnesota Twins due to stiffness in his left hamstring.
In the fifth inning, manager Alex Cora sent Refsnyder to the bench and substituted David Hamilton in the lineup. Ceddanna Rafaela moved to center field, Jarren Duran moved from center to left, and Hamilton entered the game to play shortstop.
But before heading off, Refsnyder did his share, tying the score at one through an RBI double in the top of the fourth inning. With a 1.089 OPS and a.351 batting average for the season, he concluded the day 1-for-2.
After the game, Cora talked to reporters about Refsnyder’s situation. He refrained from being overly hopeful, even though he claimed nothing seemed especially worrisome at the moment.
He’s doing OK, Cora said. “At that point, he thought he would only emerge to prevent a larger situation. Although it doesn’t seem to be an IL issue, you never know with the way things are moving in this place.
During spring training, the 33-year-old outfielder was struck by a pitch, breaking his pinky toe, which caused him to miss the next month’s play. Refsnyder was placed on the 10-day disabled list to begin the regular season, but he returned to the Red Sox on April 18 after a brief rehab stint.
Refsnyder has established a far more reliable role in Boston’s lineup than was first anticipated in the two weeks that have passed. Before 2024, Refsnyder had made 378 MLB appearances, batting.244 with a.678 OPS in those games.
Refsnyder’s output in the early going of this season has far outpaced that level, so his departure would be a further setback to an already struggling Red Sox lineup.
With a damaged thumb, shortstop Trevor Story and first baseman Triston Casas will be sidelined until at least the All-Star break, if not longer. Meanwhile, outfielder Masataka Yoshida is also on the injured list. With his return to action this Friday against the Twins, second baseman Vaughn Grissom will finally come off the injured list.
Boston will not play on Monday before beginning a two-game road series against the Atlanta Braves on Tuesday. This allows Refsnyder and the Red Sox training team approximately 48 hours to ensure that he has fully recovered from his hamstring injury.
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