Don't Miss

Yankees have high hopes for top prospect Robert Refsnyder, from S. Korea

February 12, 2015

(Courtesy of Rob Hagerty via Flickr/Creative Commons License)

By Kang Seung-woo

Robert Refsnyder, a Korean-born adoptee, has been thrust into the limelight in the U.S., where he has been identified as a top prospect for the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball (MLB).

According to U.S. media outlets, including the New York Times, Refsnyder, whose Korean name is Kim Jung-tae, is drawing media attention because the 23-year-old is competing for the Yankees’ second-base position at spring training in Florida.

“The bottom line is, he’ll go into camp and he’ll compete and he’ll have a chance to potentially earn a spot on the roster,” Yankees General Manager Brian Cashman told news website NJ.com Saturday.

“He has a chance to be a regular offensive second baseman.”

The chiseled Refsnyder, who stands 6-foot-1 and weighs 203 pounds, was selected by the Yankees in the 2012 MLB draft after helping the University of Arizona win the 2012 College World Series, where he was named the “Most Outstanding Player.”

Refsnyder was born in Seoul in 1991 and adopted at 5 months of age by a couple from California who had previously adopted another child from Korea, according to the New York Daily News on Sunday.

Refsnyder is happy about becoming a spokesman for adoptees in the U.S., whenever his help is needed.

“I am happy to do it,” he told The New York Times.

“I want people to know that it’s O.K. to be different, and I’m going to be as accessible as I can be about it. I have never shied away from it, and if kids want to ask me about it, I’ll talk about it. I might make a joke, but I’ll never hide from being adopted. I’m proud of my family. I play for the name Refsnyder.”