I want to make a handful of points very clear before we go any further.

1) I believe that Rob Refsnyder is a good person and a good professional who doesn't deserve the level of vehemence that he's getting from the Seattle Mariners fanbase. I've spoken to him twice and have personally enjoyed the interactions. While that doesn't color my opinion of him as a baseball player, I think it's worth noting.

2) I believe that signing Rob Refsynder was a good move for the Mariners in the offseason, as he was coming off a four-year stretch with the Boston Red Sox that saw him hit .276 total with 27 home runs. Refsnyder's .596 slugging against lefties in 2025 was the fourth-best among qualified hitters in baseball. He filled a clear need at the time of his signing and made the lineup deeper and more balanced.

3) I've been in favor of giving Refsynder chances still despite the dreadful start to his Mariners tenure. He's hitting .139 with three home runs and is carrying an OPS+ of 26. He's hitting just .146 against left-handers and he's hitting only .069 at home.

I've been a believer in his resume, his work ethic and I've had multiple conversations with people I trust on the 'Refuse to Lose Territory' podcast about his previous importance in Boston, and I've waited for it to translate to the Mariners.

4) It's also true that I think it's time for the Mariners to look at making some changes. 

So let's look into what's possible here.

This would make a lot of Mariners fans happy, but it wouldn't make me happy to see a guy lose his job. But, given the poor performance, it's certainly on the table. The Mariners have eaten money to DFA Mitch Haniger before, and they've let go of well-liked professionals in Ty France and Dylan Moore. The same could happen to Refsnyder.

Refsnyder has complained about a bulky knee. If that is truly an issue that's hampering him, they could put him on the injured list and re-asses things when he's healthy.

When healthy, the Mariners have been pretty adherent to a strict platoon split. They've played Luke Raley and Dominic Canzone against right-handers and Refsynder and Victor Robles against left-handers.

Canzone homered off lefty Payton Tolle and just started two of three games against the Red Sox' lefty-laden rotation. He also hit .276 against them in 68 at-bats last season.

Could the Mariners, when healthy, move to a situation where Canzone is an everyday player and Refsynder isn't always in the lineup against lefties?

This would likely mean Canzone at DH, Randy Arozarena in LF and Robles in RF. With Refsynder on the bench alongside Mitch Garver, Raley and the backup infielder (Weston Wilson right now).

Refsnyder would still be available, and he'd be an option later in games and extra innings, he just wouldn't get all the at-bats he's getting now.

*Connor Joe would have to go to Triple-A in this scenario.

The wild card in all this, Davis is a former top prospect who is currently injured at Triple-A. He went out with a strained hamstring in early June, but is working back. General manager Justin Hollander recently said that he didn't think it would take much longer for Davis to return.

Through 47 games with the Rainiers, he's hitting .265 with a .376 on-base percentage. He's got nine homers, 31 RBIs and a stolen base. The Mariners put him on the 40-man roster in May.

If he's healthy, he could be an option to replace Refsynder, also adding in more ability to play the outfield.

The Mariners will play the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday afternoon at 3:35 p.m. PT. Seattle is 40-39 and in first place in the American League West.

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