Rob Refsnyder is already redeeming Jerry Dipoto's controversial Mariners trade take

Remember when Jerry Dipoto alluded to how the Seattle Mariners couldn't acquire better players than the ones they already had? That was coming out of the All-Star break and, as bad as that sounded, time was proving him wise even before Rob Refsnyder rose to the challenge on Tuesday.

The organization has made no secret of its desire to acquire a right-handed hitter ahead of the August 3 trade deadline, but that well is drying up in a hurry. Most notably, injuries have taken Matt Shaw, Spencer Steer and Casey Schmitt off the board in just the last few days.

Out of this fog appeared Refsnyder when the Mariners activated him off the injured list on Tuesday afternoon. It felt akin to a joke. It was "Bad offense, meet worst hitter in MLB," and there were no lies detected.

Rob Refsnyder emerged as an unlikely sight for sore eyes in the Mariners' win over the Dodgers

But then the righty-swinging Refsnyder went boom in the Mariners' 7-6 win at Dodger Stadium over the two-time defending World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers. Twice, in fact.

Yeah, the two-run homer off All-Star lefty Justin Wrobleski was one of the big blows of the ballgame. But the 35-year-old Refsnyder also destroyed a double off another lefty, Jack Dreyer, in the ninth. It left the bat at 112.3 mph, marking his hardest hit of the season.

Granted, Refsnyder also struck out twice. That was a taste of the bad old times that preceded his placement on the IL in June with pain in his right knee, when he was batting .133 with 32 strikeouts through 105 at-bats.

Yet even before Refsnyder crushed those two balls, there was a flicker of hope in his comments to the media, including Adam Jude of The Seattle Times. Injections in his right knee have it feeling better, and he also hinted at changes in his stance to alleviate pressure on said knee.

Rob Refsnyder is only one Mariner looking to make up for lost production

So, maybe it's not too late for Refsnyder to be the guy the Mariners signed for $6.25 million. And lest anyone forget, that guy had a 155 wRC+ against lefties between 2022 and 2025. Only five hitters did better in that span.

Of course, he's also just one reason that Seattle's slugging percentage against lefties shot up from .338 before Tuesday (30th in MLB) to .352 after Tuesday (28th in MLB).

Dominic Canzone continued proving he's no platoon hitter with a pair of left-on-left homers, with Julio Rodríguez and Cal Raleigh pitching in homers of the right-on-left variety. Raleigh's was, well, Refsnyder-ian in its implications. He only has a 48 wRC+ against lefties after destroying them for a 186 wRC+ in his 60-homer campaign a year ago.

Do the Mariners still need a right-handed hitter? On paper, yes. But how many do you actually see out there? Don't lie and say "a lot," because that's codswallop. The truth might be that the best answer lies in house with top prospect Michael Arroyo, who Jude reports is in consideration for a promotion. He has a 149 wRC+ since June 1, and he's batting .320 against lefties overall.

So yeah, Dipoto is proving to be more right than even he expected. His best trade deadline play might be to put the righty hitter pursuit on the backburner, and go all-in on addressing the bullpen. It would mean trusting the cavalry has truly, finally arrived, which sure seemed like the case last night.

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