Red Sox’s Rob Refsnyder Makes Admission After Highlight-Reel Catch

Rob Refsnyer came through for the Red Sox with his bat and his glove Tuesday night in Cleveland.

Refsnyder, who signed a one-year contract extension with Boston last week, smacked a go-ahead RBI single in the eighth inning of the visitors’ eventual 5-4 win over the Guardians. But two innings prior to the clutch knock, the veteran outfielder provided a lift for his club with some fantastic defense.

With the Red Sox clinging to a one-run lead, Andrés Giménez laced a deep fly ball to left center field to lead off the sixth inning. Cleveland’s All-Star second baseman appeared to be bound for extra bases, but Refsnyder kept the bags clean with a sliding catch that brought him right in front of the wall at Progressive Field. Although the ninth-year pro made the snag look fairly effortless, he admitted it wasn’t a pain-free play.

“That one hurt,” Refsnyder told reporters, per MassLive. “I’m not gonna lie. Kind of just coming off the bench like that. Thankfully, made a play for (James) Paxton right there.”

Refsnyder added: “Giménez hit it. He’s a pretty special player. If I had missed that, it might have been a triple, especially with the alley kind of deep in left-center and that wall. So thankfully, just made the grab and had Paxton keep going.”

The Red Sox will try to keep the winning ways going Wednesday night when they meet the Guardians for the middle contest of their three-game series. NESN’s full coverage begins at 6 p.m. ET.