The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
New opportunity for Young
He already has players’ respect, and he hopes to earn job with Braves.
LAKE BUENA VISTA, FLA. — The Braves know what kind of spark Eric Young Jr. can provide, since he had four multihit games and four multi-stolen base games against them in the past two seasons with the Rockies and Mets.
And those with the Braves in 2013 also know something about him as a person, having seen the concern and anguish that Young showed after inadvertently stepping on Tim Hudson’s ankle when the pitcher reached back with his leg and stepped too far across the base while covering on a grounder in a late-July game in New York.
When the Braves signed Young this month to a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training, Braves players were pleased.
“He’s an awesome player — fast, gets on base, top-of-thelineup kind of guy who can
Young
play a lot of positions,” first baseman Freddie Freeman said. “I got to sit down with him at Justin Upton’s wedding this year. What a great guy.”
Third baseman Chris Johnson remembered how Young responded following the Hudson incident.
“I also knew he was a pretty good player, too,” Johnson said. “But yeah, that (incident) definitely speaks to his character and the kind of person they brought into the clubhouse.”
Young, 29, settled for a minor-league deal after hitting a career-worst .229 with 16 extra-base hits (one home run), a .299 on-base percentage and 30 stolen bases in 100 games for the Mets last season. Some other teams also showed interest in the switch-hitter, who in 2013 led the National League with 48 stolen bases while batting .249 with 36 extra-base hits (seven triples) for the Rockies and Mets.
“Opportunity,” he said of signing with the Braves. “Obviously I was in the division, so it’s not like I had to do a lot more studying.”
Young has a .255 average and .327 OBP with two triples and seven stolen bases in 12 games at Turner Field, including a three-hit, three-stolenbase game April 10.
He could compete with rookies Zoilo Almonte and Eury Perez for a spot as backup outfield or platoon left-field job, and Young could play some second base in a pinch (he has 46 starts at second, but only two in the past two seasons). Young’s leadoff ability is a big plus, but the other two players are on the roster and Almonte is out of minor-league options.
Young has a .252 career average with a .320 OBP, 54 doubles, 18 triples and eight home runs in 1,589 plate appearances over six seasons, and 138 steals in 171 attempts. Against right-handers, he’s been caught only 18 times in 126 attempts.
That night at Citi Field, Hudson’s ankle bent at a nearly 90-degree angle and snapped. As the pitcher lay writhing, Young nearly broke down. He went over and talked to Hudson and shook his hand before the pitcher was carted off.
“You never want to be a part of someone’s seasonending injury, but you could just tell he was compassionate about it,” Freeman said. “And getting to know him the last couple of years, you can just tell that’s the kind of guy that he is.”
Young wasn’t worried about any potential carryover among Braves fans who might not be so understanding.
“Braves fans have been supportive,” he said. “Obviously you have a few knuckleheads in there, but for the most part ev- erybody was supportive. Knowing the respect I gained for everybody in this organization, as well as Atlanta and the state of Georgia, made it an easier decision to come here and want to play in front of those type of people.”
The injury initially appeared to be careerthreatening, given Hudson’s age (38). But the right-hander recovered fully and had an All-Star season in 2014 for the World Series-champion Giants.
“Those are two class acts, Tim Hudson and EY,” Freeman said. “And that was the best scenario. It was nice to see Huddy come back and be an All-Star, win a World Series, and now we get to have EY on our team.”