Eric Orlando Young Jr. (born May 25, 1985) is an American former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

second baseman and

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to c ...

and current

first base coach In baseball, a number of coaches assist in the smooth functioning of a team. They are assistants to the manager, who determines the starting lineup and batting order, decides how to substitute players during the game, and makes strategy decisio ...

for the

Washington Nationals The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C.. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. From 2005 to 2007, the team played in RFK Stadiu ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

(MLB). He played in MLB for the Colorado Rockies,

Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The Braves were founded in Bos ...

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one of ...

and

Los Angeles Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team h ...

. He was the

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team ...

stolen base leader in 2013.

Baseball career

Young was born in New Brunswick, New Jersey and graduated from

Piscataway Township High School Piscataway High School is a four-year comprehensive community public high school serving students in ninth through twelfth grades from Piscataway in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States, operating as the lone secondary school of the P ...

in Piscataway, New Jersey. He had a football scholarship to attend

Villanova University Villanova University is a private Roman Catholic research university in Villanova, Pennsylvania. It was founded by the Augustinians in 1842 and named after Saint Thomas of Villanova. The university is the oldest Catholic university in Penns ...

. The Colorado Rockies selected Young in the 30th round of the 2003 Major League Baseball draft, and he signed rather than attend college. Young began his career playing in 2004 for the Casper Rockies (now the

Grand Junction Rockies The Grand Junction Jackalopes are an independent baseball team of the Pioneer League, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball (MLB) but is an MLB Partner League. They are located in Grand Junction, Colorado, and play their home games ...

), that was an advanced rookie team located in Casper, Wyoming and was part of the Pioneer League. In 2006, Young led all minor leaguers in stolen bases with 87. He then won the

Arizona Fall League The Arizona Fall League (AFL) is an off-season sports league owned and operated by Major League Baseball (MLB) which operates during the autumn in Arizona, United States, at six different baseball complexes. Arizona Fall League rosters are fille ...

batting title, finishing with a .430

average In ordinary language, an average is a single number taken as representative of a list of numbers, usually the sum of the numbers divided by how many numbers are in the list (the arithmetic mean). For example, the average of the numbers 2, 3, 4, 7 ...

. Young appeared in the 2009 Futures Game, hitting a three-run home run. The world team won 7 to 5.

Colorado Rockies

Young made his major league debut on August 25, 2009, for the Colorado Rockies playing center field. He had his first career hit in this game during the 5th inning and ended the game 1–4. Eric Young Sr. was in attendance for his son's debut. On September 8, 2009, Young Jr. hit his first career home run in the bottom of the 6th inning against the Cincinnati Reds. During spring training for the 2010 season, Young was optioned to the team's Triple-A affiliate, the Colorado Springs Sky Sox. On April 25, 2010, Young was recalled to the Rockies from Colorado Springs. On May 15, 2010, he suffered a stress fracture and was placed on the DL. He would return from the DL to

Coors Field Coors Field is a baseball stadium in downtown Denver, Colorado. It is the home field of Major League Baseball's Colorado Rockies. Opened in 1995, the park is located in Denver's Lower Downtown neighborhood, two blocks from Union Station. The ...

on August 14, 2010. On May 27, 2011, he was called back up to the Rockies with an above .300 batting average with the Sky Sox.

New York Mets

Young was designated for assignment on June 12, 2013, and traded to the

on June 18, 2013, in exchange for

Collin McHugh Collin Alexander McHugh (born June 19, 1987) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Atlanta Braves of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played for the New York Mets, Colorado Rockies, Houston Astros and Tampa Bay Rays. List ...

. On July 24, 2013, Young was involved in a season-ending accident with

Tim Hudson Timothy Adam Hudson (born July 14, 1975), nicknamed "Huddy" is an American former professional baseball pitcher of Major League Baseball (MLB). After spending his college years at Chattahoochee Valley Community College and Auburn University, Hu ...

. Hudson was covering the first base bag, and Young attempted to beat the groundout. When Young stepped late on the bag, his cleat dug hard into Hudson's ankle full stride, unnaturally rolling it. This incident broke Hudson's ankle and ultimately ended Hudson's last season with the Braves. Young expressed extreme concern for Hudson after the play ended. On August 2, 2013, Young hit the first walk-off hit of his career, a two-run home run, in the 11th inning against the Kansas City Royals. On September 29, 2013, in the final game of the season, Young stole his 45th and 46th bases against the Milwaukee Brewers, becoming the National League stolen base leader. He is the Mets' first stolen bases champion since José Reyes in 2007. On December 2, 2014, Young was non-tendered by the Mets.

Atlanta Braves

Young signed a minor league contract with the Atlanta Braves on February 13, 2015. The deal included an invitation to spring training. On June 5, 2015, the Braves designated Young for assignment. With Atlanta, he batted .169/.229/.273.

Second stint with the Mets

On August 22, 2015, Young was traded back to the Mets in exchange for cash considerations. He was removed from the 40-man roster on November 5, 2015, making him a free agent. Young had a batting average of .153 with no home runs, five RBIs and .217 on-base percentage with both the Braves and the Mets in 2015.

Milwaukee Brewers

On January 5, 2016, Young signed a minor league contract with the Brewers, with an invitation to spring training. He was one of nine players competing to be the Brewers center fielder for the 2016 season. Center field was one of the last positions the Brewers decided, but Young did not make the Opening Day roster.

New York Yankees

On August 31, 2016, the Brewers traded Young to the

for cash considerations. The Yankees assigned him to the

Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders The Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (often abbreviated to SWB RailRiders) are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the New York Yankees. They are located in Moosic, Pennsylvania, in the ...

Los Angeles Angels

On January 24, 2017, the Angels signed Young Jr. to a minor league deal, later calling him up to replace the injured Mike Trout. On May 31, Young hit a game-winning solo home run in the eighth inning to give the Angels a 2–1 lead against the

. This was his first home run since 2014. The Angels went on to win by that score. He was outrighted on July 13. He was called back up during the end of the season. In 110 at bats, Young tied a career high by hitting 4 home runs; he was outrighted and elected free agency after the season. On January 4, 2018, the Angels re-signed Young to a minor league deal. He was assigned to AAA

Salt Lake Bees The Salt Lake Bees are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Angels. They are located in Salt Lake City, Utah, and play their home games at Smith's Ballpark. The ballpark o ...

for the 2018 season. He was recalled on July 27. In 109 at bats, he batted .202/.248/.303.

Baltimore Orioles

On February 9, 2019, the Orioles signed Young Jr. to a minor league contract that included an invitation to spring training. He was released on March 22, 2019.

Seattle Mariners

On March 26, 2019, Young Jr. signed a minor league deal with the

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The team joined the American League as an expansion team ...

. He was released on July 23, 2019.

Acereros de Monclova

On July 28, 2019, Young Jr. signed with the

Acereros de Monclova The Acereros de Monclova (English: Monclova Steelers) are a professional baseball team in the Mexican League based in Monclova, Coahuila, Mexico. Their home ballpark is Estadio de Béisbol Monclova, which has a capacity of 11,000 people. The Ace ...

of the

Mexican League The Mexican League (, ) is a professional baseball league based in Mexico and the oldest running professional league in the country. The league has 18 teams organized in two divisions, North and South. Teams play 114 games each season. Five te ...

. He was released on January 24, 2020.

Guerreros de Oaxaca

On February 12, 2020, Young Jr. signed with the

Guerreros de Oaxaca The Guerreros de Oaxaca (English: Oaxaca Warriors) are a professional baseball team in the Mexican League based in Oaxaca City, Oaxaca, Mexico. Their home field is Estadio Eduardo Vasconcelos. History In October 1995, a group of businessmen, ...

of the

. Young Jr. did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the Mexican League season because of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

. On November 18, 2020, Young Jr. was released by the Guerreros.

Coaching career

On January 27, 2021, Young Jr. was announced to be part of the coaching staff of the

Tacoma Rainiers The Tacoma Rainiers are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Seattle Mariners. They are located in Tacoma, Washington, and play their home games at Cheney Stadium, which opened in 1960 ...

, Triple-A affiliate of the

. The Rainiers announced October 28, 2021, that Young would become first base coach for the

Personal life

Young is the son of former professional baseball player Eric Young Sr. and the paternal half-brother of actor

Dallas Dupree Young Dallas Dupree Young (born October 25, 2006) is an American actor best known for his recurring role in '' The Fosters'', and his starring role in the Nickelodeon sitcom ''Cousins for Life''. In 2021, he joined the cast of the Netflix series ''Cobr ...

. Young and his wife, Victoria

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Young, Eric Jr. 1985 births Living people Acereros de Monclova players African-American baseball players American expatriate baseball players in Mexico Arizona League Mariners players Asheville Tourists players Atlanta Braves players Baseball players from New Jersey Binghamton Mets players Bravos de Margarita players American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela Casper Rockies players Chandler–Gilbert Coyotes baseball players Colorado Rockies players Colorado Springs Sky Sox players Gwinnett Braves players Las Vegas 51s players Leones del Escogido players American expatriate baseball players in the Dominican Republic Los Angeles Angels players Major League Baseball left fielders Major League Baseball second basemen Modesto Nuts players Naranjeros de Hermosillo players National League stolen base champions New York Mets players New York Yankees players People from Manhattan Sportspeople from New Brunswick, New Jersey Baseball players from New York City People from Piscataway, New Jersey Phoenix Desert Dogs players Piscataway High School alumni Salt Lake Bees players St. Lucie Mets players Tulsa Drillers players Tacoma Rainiers players Waikiki Beach Boys players 21st-century African-American sportspeople 20th-century African-American people