Nothing prepared Justin Snyder for the news.
"Yes. Very much so," Snyder responded when asked if he was shocked when the Yankees released him. "I had no idea."
Just days before camp broke, the Yankees informed the twenty-five-year-old infielder that he would not be going back to Double-A Trenton, where he'd played all of 2009 and most of 2010, and he would not make the Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre roster, where he'd played two games in 2010.
During a spring training in which he waited for at-bats and did his best with whatever chance he was given to play, he said he never saw it coming.
"I had no clue. They took me into a room and...bam."
Snyder's role at Trenton cannot be overstated. He was able to help the team in a number of ways on the field. They could've asked him to do anything and he'd either done it or was willing to. The Yankees drafted him in 2007 in the 21st round and in his career with them he played 229 games at second, 59 at third, 58 games at shorstop, and several games at first base and the entire outfield.
But at Trenton he was used where he's best, at second, and off the field, in the clubhouse, he was a presence. Players who keep their teammates going no matter what and are capable of helping the team in any situation are invaluable. That's him.
After his brief stint at Triple-A he was sent back to Trenton and remained upbeat. He acknowledged he was only there to fill a roster spot, but he expressed how much he liked being around guys who seemed more professional, more ready to play. He wanted to be there.
While in Tampa we spoke about his desire to start the season there. "It wouldn't bother me," he'd said.
When it all came down and the Yankees let him go, he went home and pondered his next move. He thought he knew what to do and then, as time went on, he changed his tune.
"When my agent first came to me about signing with an independent team and I said no. I didn't know how the whole process worked. But after a month no one called. So I decided I'd rather stay in shape and keep playing in case someone calls."
On May 15th Snyder arrived to play for the Minnesota Saint Paul Saints of the American Association, where he expects to split time between second and third.
His decision to take the Saints offer is one he feels was best for him.
"It's good. I get to get back in the swing of things. I was bored out of my mind at home."
In five games he's hitting .333 with seven hits, two RBI, and two walks.
This wasn't his plan, but for a player with his mentality, not playing was worse. Not being on a baseball field trying to make something happen didn't work for him.
"It doesn't matter as long as I'm playing. I'm still here and involved in baseball. Here I can show what I'm capable of in case someone is looking."
In 2009 at Double-A Trenton Justin Snyder hit .195, knocking in 29 runs and 51 base hits. In 2010 he finished the season hitting .333, 66 hits, 28 RBI, and 44 BB.