Hunter Renfroe wasn’t among the four members of the Boston Red Sox who made it to the next round of voting for Major League Baseball’s All-Star Game.
It’s understandable. At the beginning of the season, the outfielder wasn’t exactly a lock in the lineup.
But thanks to how he’s been playing, raking at the plate and racking up enough throws from right to lead MLB in outfield assists, it’s looking like a travesty he won’t be representing Boston in Denver.
“With the at-bats he put in May, we were taking him out,” Cora on Monday said of Renfroe, before the right fielder blasted two home runs for the Red Sox against the Kansas City Royals, including what would prove to be the game-winner.
“We gave him some good matchups, but he’s created matches for himself, right? It’s all about him. He started hitting the ball the other way, he’s being more selective lately, you look at his OPS the last 30 games, it’s above average, you know? And is the guy that, yeah, he had power, we envisioned that. But he’s becoming a good hitter. Hanging in there against righties, going the other way, taking pitches when he has to. This is more about him than us. He’s earned his playing time, he’s earned his spot in the lineup. He is actually giving us balance, right? A guy right behind (Rafael Devers) that can drive in runs and can get on base and has power, so he has been amazing for us.”
More than midway through June, Renfroe is looking like one of the best signings of the year. Especially of late, batting a .309 average with 10 home runs, 32 RBIs and 23 extra-base hits since the start of May.
