Delmon Young
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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| Minnesota Twins — No. 21 | |
| Outfielder | |
| Born: September 14, 1985 | |
| Bats: Right | Throws: Right |
| Major League Baseball debut | |
| August 29, 2006 for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays | |
| Selected MLB statistics (through June 5, 2008) |
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| Batting average | .287 |
| Home runs | 16 |
| RBI | 122 |
| Teams | |
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Delmon Damarcus Young, (born September 14, 1985 in Montgomery, Alabama), is an outfielder for the Minnesota Twins. He is the younger brother of MLB player Dmitri Young, an Outfielder and First baseman for the Washington Nationals. Despite having little major league experience, Young has already received a reputation around baseball for his strong and accurate throwing arm in the outfield.[1] Don Zimmer, now a consultant with the Rays, has compared Young's arm to that of Jesse Barfield or Raúl Mondesí. In terms of hitting ability, at 6'3", 205 pounds, Delmon presents an intimidating and strong plate presence, and his hitting ability has often been compared to that of Albert Belle.[2][3][4] He has a line drive swing with a slight uppercut that can produce long home runs and bullet line drives.
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[edit] 2003-2005
Young graduated from Adolfo Camarillo High School in 2003, located in Camarillo, CA, whereupon he was drafted first overall in the 2003 Major League Baseball Draft[5].
In 2005, Young hit .336 with 20 home runs, 71 runs batted in and an OPS of .968 in 2005, in 84 games with Double-A Montgomery, winning the Southern League MVP despite playing barely more than half the season. Young was promoted to Class AAA Durham on July 15, 2005, where he batted .285 with six home runs and 28 RBI in 52 games. After the season was over, Delmon was named Baseball America's Minor League Player of the Year, not to mention its #1 overall prospect for the 2006 season. Delmon finished his minor league career with a .318 batting average.
[edit] 2006 Season
[edit] Controversy
On April 26, 2006, while playing for the Durham Bulls (AAA - Tampa Bay) in a game against the Pawtucket Red Sox, Young threw his bat at the umpire after being called out on strikes. He stared at the umpire for some time and refused to leave the batter's box. He finally did, but then started to return to his dugout and the center field camera caught him throwing his bat underhand, end-over-end, toward the umpire. It hit him on his chest and arm but he was not hurt[6].
The next day, Young issued an apology through his agent, claiming that he had not intended for the bat to actually strike the umpire, but acknowledging that it was unacceptable to have thrown the bat at all. The International League (AAA) initially suspended Young indefinitely, then announced on May 9, 2006 he would be suspended for 50 games, without pay, retroactive to the day of the incident. Young had the option to appeal the suspension, but chose not to do so. The suspension ended on June 19, 2006.[7]
This altercation was not the first he had had with an umpire during a game. In 2005, while playing for the Double-A Montgomery Biscuits (Tampa Bay), Young received a three-game suspension for bumping an umpire.[8]
[edit] Highlights
On August 28, 2006, the Devil Rays called Young up to the major leagues[9] after it was decided that Jonny Gomes had to undergo season-ending surgery. Thirty-one games remained of the 2006 Devil Rays season when he was promoted. His first game at the major league level was against the Chicago White Sox and occurred on August 29, 2006, ten years to the day after his older brother Dmitri played in his first major league game[10]. In Delmon's first major league plate appearance, White Sox pitcher Freddy Garcia hit Young with a first-pitch fastball. After striking out in his second at-bat, Young stroked a curveball for a 412-foot two-run home run, which was his first major league hit[11].
[edit] 2007 Season
As a 21-year-old in 2007, Young finished second in American League Rookie of the Year voting to Boston second baseman Dustin Pedroia[12]. Young was also a unanimous selection to the 2007 Topps Major League Rookie All-Star Team. The selection was the result of the 49th annual Topps balloting of Major League managers[13].
On November 28, 2007, the Rays traded Young, along with Brendan Harris and Jason Pridie, to the Minnesota Twins for Jason Bartlett, Matt Garza, and Eduardo Morlan[14].
[edit] 2008 Season
Delmon Young had an impressive spring training. In 36 AB, he batted .361 with two doubles, one home run, and seven RBIs, locking up his spot in left-field for opening day.[15]
He is off to a slow start offensively in his first year with the Minnesota Twins. Through June 8, 2008, he has played in 62/64 games with the team batting just .269 with one home run and 20 RBIs. He leads all left-fielders in assists with seven, the next closest player only having four; however, he does lead all AL left-fielders with five errors. [16] [17]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Crasnick, Jerry (2007-06-20). Identifying the elite arms in the game. Retrieved on 2007-06-23.
- ^ Delmon Young - No. 2 of Baseball's Best Minor League Players. Retrieved on 2007-06-23.
- ^ Tampa Bay Devil Rays Top 10 Prospects (2004-1-12). Retrieved on 2007-06-23.
- ^ Friday Chat with Matt Meyers (2005-8-26). Retrieved on 2007-06-23.
- ^ Paul C. Smith (2003-06-03). Rays select Young with first pick. Retrieved on 2007-11-29.
- ^ Jonathan Mayo (2006-04-26). Young hits ump with bat after ejection. Retrieved on 2007-06-23.
- ^ Young suspended 50 games for bat toss (2006-05-09). Retrieved on 2007-06-23.
- ^ Kevin Goldstein, Chris Klein, and Matt Meyers (2005-05-02). Daily Dish. Retrieved on 2007-06-23.
- ^ Marc Topkin (2006-08-28). Delmon on the way. Retrieved on 2007-06-23.
- ^ Player File - Dmitri Young. Retrieved on 2007-06-23.
- ^ Doug Harrison. Delmon Young Newsmaker. Retrieved on 2007-06-23.
- ^ Bill Chastain (2006-11-12). Young runner-up for AL ROY. Retrieved on 2007-11-29.
- ^ "Topps announces the 49th annual Topps Major League Rookie All-Star Team," KansasCity.Royals.mlb.com, 11/26/07, accessed 11/26/07
- ^ Anthony DiComo (2006-11-29). Rays send Young to Twins for Garza. Retrieved on 2007-11-29.
- ^ http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/springStats?team=min&type=bat&year=2008
- ^ http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/stats/fielding?groupId=9&season=2008&seasonType=2&split=83&sortOrder=true&sortColumn=assists
- ^ http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/stats/fielding?groupId=9&season=2008&seasonType=2&split=83&sortColumn=errors
[edit] External links
- Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube
- MLN FAB50 Baseball 2005 - No. 2 - Minor League News
| Preceded by Bryan Bullington |
First overall pick in the MLB Entry Draft 2003 |
Succeeded by Matt Bush |
| Preceded by Melky Cabrera, Andre Ethier, and Nick Markakis |
Topps Rookie All-Star Team; Outfielder 2007 |
Succeeded by Incumbent |
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