Five things about Hunter Renfroe, claimed by Cincinnati Reds from Los Angeles Angels
When the Cincinnati Reds added veteran outfielders Harrison Bader and Hunter Renfroe on waiver claims Thursday, what stood out to many Reds fans was Bader’s 2021 Gold Glove and Renfroe’s 19 home runs this season (in addition to five Major League Baseball seasons with 25+ HRs).
But Renfroe also is known for his defense. He was a Gold Glove finalist in right field in 2019 with the San Diego Padres and in 2021 with the Boston Red Sox. And from 2017 to 2022, Renfroe led all MLB outfielders with 56 assists, nine more than Starling Marte in second place.
The Reds also have witnessed Renfroe’s power firsthand. In 2022 for the Milwaukee Brewers, Renfroe hit eight homers in 76 plate appearances over 18 games against Cincinnati, including two in one game May 11, three in three games June 17-19, and three in two games Sept. 24-25.
Renfroe hit .242 with 31 doubles in addition to the 19 HRs. He drove in 56 and scored 56 runs in 504 plate appearances. Since his big-league debut in 2016, he’s hit .240 with 176 HRs and 450 RBIs, with an OPS of .782.
Five more things to know about the 31-year-old Renfroe:
Renfroe was a first-round pick (13th overall) of the Padres in 2013 out of Mississippi State University.
Renfroe would be the fourth 2013 first-rounder to play for the Reds, joining Colin Moran (drafted No. 6 by the Marlins), Phil Ervin (27th by the Reds) and Michael Lorenzen (38th by Cincinnati).
The New York Yankees selected Aaron Judge 32nd overall.
The Reds’ draft class included Ben Lively in the fourth round and Tyler Mahle in the seventh round.
Graham Ashcraft, Renfroe’s new teammate who allowed a home run to Renfroe last season, also attended Mississippi State.
Renfroe hit a milestone homer off a current Red.
On May 4, 2021, Renfroe was playing for the Red Sox when he hit his 100th career HR at Fenway Park against the Detroit Tigers‘ Buck Farmer, who’s in his second season with the Reds.
Of the 12 homers Renfroe has hit against the Reds, 10 have come at Great American Ball Park.
Renfroe has homered four times off of Zack Greinke, his most against any pitcher.
Renfroe’s first career pinch-hit homer was a grand slam against the Reds.
Renfroe, then with the Padres, stepped to the plate with the bases loaded against Luis Castillo at Petco Park on June 3, 2018.
Renfroe’s slam turned Castillo’s 2-0 lead into a 4-2 deficit for the Reds, which went on to lose 6-3.
Renfroe’s only other pinch-hit grand slam was a walk-off bomb against the Los Angeles Dodgers‘ Kenley Jansen in May 2019.
Renfroe does strike out, but not as much as he did earlier in his career.
Many HR hitters are known to strike out a good amount.
Renfroe’s strikeout and hit totals have been much closer together over the past three seasons than they were in 2017, 2019 and 2020.
In 2017, Renfroe had 103 hits and 140 Ks. In 2019, he had 95 hits and 154 Ks. In pandemic-shortened 2020, he had 19 hits and 37 Ks.
Over the past three seasons with three different teams, Renfroe has a total of three more hits than strikeouts. His batting average also has improved, as he hit .259 with Boston in 2021, .255 with Milwaukee last season and .242 this season after batting .235 over parts of four seasons in San Diego and .156 with the Rays in ’20.
Renfroe and the Rays lost the 2020 World Series to the Dodgers, but Renfroe homered in Game 4.
Renfroe’s solo homer in the 5th inning against Julio Urias was one of four hit by the Rays in an 8-7 win that knotted the series at 2. The Dodgers won Games 5 and 6.
Renfroe’s only other postseason HR was a grand slam off of Toronto’s Hyun-Jin Ryu in the 2nd inning of the second game of the Rays’ two-game Wild Card sweep of the Blue Jays.
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This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Five things about Hunter Renfroe, claimed by Cincinnati from Angels
Source: Yahoo Sports
