Tuesday night at Coolray Field, two of the premier second base prospects in baseball went head to head. While the Yankees’ prized second base prospect Rob Refsnyder may have had the better night statistically, Jose Peraza and his Gwinnett Braves took home the 3-2 victory.
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Rob Refsnyder caused quite a big to-do amongst Yankees’ fans this spring training. Most were not looking forward to seeing Stephen Drew as the 2015 Yankees’ second baseman, and after a breakout 2015 and a solid spring (.364/.461/.568, 1 home run, 7 RBI), many felt that he should be the starter. As most people will tell you, Refsnyder’s bat is not what has held him back, but his glove. He has 7 errors in his first 17 games, so starting him in Triple-A to work the kinks out seems like the right move thus far.
Jose Peraza is the 20-year old No. 1 prospect in the Braves’ system who many also felt could take over in 2015 as the second baseman of the new look Braves. The Braves brass saw otherwise, as Peraza had seen a mere 44 games above Class A ball, and none at Triple-A. With the hot start by Jace Peterson, the Braves felt they had the luxury of grooming Peraza, who comes in at No. 27 on the Grading on the Curve Top 50, for at least the start of 2015 in Triple-A.
So, after Peraza rested in the series opener, Tuesday night’s game pitted the two against each other for the first time. Their nights were surprising similar as they showed that they are indeed the cream of the crop at second base in the International League.
Refsnyder started his night with a hardly hit single that went off of a leaping Peraza’s glove into right field. He would inevitably be stranded. Peraza’s first at bat saw him lay down a perfectly executed sacrifice bunt with his 75 speed he nearly beat out. Both saw their first at bats go to waste as the score remained tied at zero.
The second time around the lineup and the score still tied at zero, both teams were looking for a spark to start a rally. Both teams would rely on their best prospects to come through.
Refsnyder came to bat in the top of the fourth and ripped a double past the diving third baseman down the line all the way to the corner. The very next batter, slugger Kyle Roller, would rip a long double to the outfield gap, driving Refsnyder in to score a run. RailRiders took the lead 1-0.
How would the G-Braves respond in the bottom of the fourth? Lo and behold, Jose Peraza came to the plate. He worked a 3-2 count and was able to turn the pay off pitch into a single. Due to his speed, he instantly began starting to dance as he led off of first base. RailRiders pitcher Eric Wooten was flustered and in his attempt to pick off Peraza balked. Peraza took his free second base, and on the ensuing Elmer Reyes single, Peraza’s blazing fast speed scored an easy run. The game was tied and the two major focal points of this series were the reason.
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Both batters final two at bats would be uneventful. Refsnyder would strike out looking with no one on and then draw a four pitch walk in his final at bat. Peraza would pop out to Refsnyder in his third at bat and the struck out swinging himself in his final at bat.
In the field, both were flawless, but Peraza had a flasher night. Refsnyder fielded everything at him cleanly and smoothly, but rarely had to move aside from one soft liner into short right. Peraza made a few nice plays, including a nice play on a hard liner into short right. He also turned a key double play when the RailRiders were threatening. Braves shortstop Elmer Reyes made a run saving, diving stop and Peraza turned a pretty double play.
Both prospects proved a few things last night. They are catalysts to their teams, are sharp offensively, and are slowly becoming reliable defensive stalwarts. It won’t be long before one of them makes their big league debut.