Hunter Renfroe: Was The Breakout Season In Boston Real?
Was there a bigger surprise in baseball last year than the breakout party that was Hunter Renfroe? Boston signed Renfroe for $3 million this past offseason after he was just cut loose by the Tampa Bay Rays. Renfroe somehow went from totally unplayable to one of the best corner outfielders in baseball overnight. Was it a flash in the pan or is this new version of Renfroe one we should get used to seeing?
The Red Sox have a tough decision to make on Renfroe. He’s an obvious sell high candidate while still being controllable for the next two seasons for a reasonable price. Renfroe had a weird breakout year at age 29 but there’s good reason to believe this new version of Renfroe is the one here to stay.
It never really made sense that Renfroe was as bad as he was. Renfroe is built like a tank. He threw SIXTEEN runners out this year. I’m not sure there is a scarier throwing arm in the outfield in the entire sport. Renfroe previously just sucked at making contact. When he did, that puppy jumped off his bat.
If you paid attention to Renfroe’s swing, it’s significantly different than prior seasons. His bat movement before the pitch is thrown has been quieted way down. Yes, Renfroe still shakes his bat in the box but compare that to how it looked with the Rays.
Renfroe looked jittery in the box with the Rays and Padres. His plate discipline was horrible and a lot of it had to do with his starting point. The way Renfroe was wiggling his bat before, there was always a different starting point with his swing. Baseball is a game of half centimeters, not inches. Pitchers throw way too hard to have an inconsistent swing path. It’s made a world of difference.
The Sox right fielder is projected to earn just $4.5 million in 2022 and has another year under his belt with Alex Cora. Renowned hitting coach Tim Hyers is no longer with the organization which stings but Peter Fatse has been with the club and is a direct disciple. Boston clearly found something that works for Renfroe so it feels odd to not run this puppy back.
If the Red Sox win another title, they’re going to need a repeat performance from Renfroe this year. Renfroe posted 31 homers and an OPS+ of 112. Keep in mind, Renfroe also hit .156 in April before the Sox were able to correct his swing. Time will tell if Renfroe is the gift that keeps on giving in the future. However, this unexpected surprise couldn’t have worked out better for the Chaim Bloom led front office.
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