Mark Melancon struck it rich in the offseason. (Photo via MLB.com)
Five former Arizona Wildcats are on Opening Day rosters, including former college teammates reunited this season in San Francisco.
Others to watch as the season unfold include New York Yankees infielder/outfielder Robert Refsnyder, who was among the final spring training cuts, and Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Kevin Newman, a hot-hitting 2015 first-rounder who is starting the season in Triple-A. Outfielder Johnny Field, in the Tampa Bay organization, will also start in Triple-A and still seems to have some upward mobility.
Here are the five Wildcats on Opening Day rosters:
Bandy
Jett Bandy, C
Team: Milwaukee Brewers
Age: 27
Draft: 2011, 31st round, 945th overall
Bandy played in 70 games for the Los Angeles Angels, batting .234 and hitting eight home runs in 209 at-bats. He was traded to Milwaukee in the offseason and made his first Opening Day roster.
Nick Hundley, C
Team: San Francisco Giants
Age: 33
Draft: 2005, 2nd round, 76th overall
Hundley is starting his 10th major-league season, his first with the Giants after signing a one-year, $2 million deal in the offseason. Hundley has a .250 career average.
Mark Melancon, RP
Team: San Francisco Giants
Age: 32
Draft: 2006, 9th round, 284th overall
Melancon has become one of the top late-inning relievers in baseball, rewarded very handsomely with a four-year $62 million deal this offseason after finishing last year with the Washington Nationals. He had 131 saves in the past three seasons.
Rickard
Joey Rickard, OF
Team: Baltimore Orioles
Age: 25
Draft: 2012, 9th round, 302nd overall
Had a solid rookie season in 2016, hitting .268 in 85 games for Baltimore. As last season, he had a strong spring training, earning a role on the Opening Day roster as a platoon right-handed hitting outfielder.
Steve Selsky, OF/INF
Team: Boston Red Sox
Age: 27
Draft: 2011, 33rd round, 1,015th overall
Selsky, acquired in the offseason after making his MLB debut with Cincinnati last year (.314 in 51 at-bats), was recently sent to the minors after a strong spring. He got the call for the Opening Day roster because Boston needed a right-handed bat off the bench due to an injury to utility Jeff Rutledge.
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