Headlines

  • Tigers Fire General Manager Al Avila
  • Matt Carpenter Expected To Miss 6-8 Weeks With Foot Fracture
  • Braves Select Top Prospect Vaughn Grissom, Activate Kirby Yates
  • 2022-23 MLB Free Agent Power Rankings: August Edition
  • Tim Anderson Out 4-6 Weeks Due To Torn Ligament In Hand
  • Blue Jays Sign Jackie Bradley Jr., Designate Matt Peacock
  • Previous
  • Next
Register
Login
  • Hoops Rumors
  • Pro Football Rumors
  • Pro Hockey Rumors

MLB Trade Rumors

  • Home
  • Teams
    • AL East
      • Baltimore Orioles
      • Boston Red Sox
      • New York Yankees
      • Tampa Bay Rays
      • Toronto Blue Jays
    • AL Central
      • Chicago White Sox
      • Cleveland Guardians
      • Detroit Tigers
      • Kansas City Royals
      • Minnesota Twins
    • AL West
      • Houston Astros
      • Los Angeles Angels
      • Oakland Athletics
      • Seattle Mariners
      • Texas Rangers
    • NL East
      • Atlanta Braves
      • Miami Marlins
      • New York Mets
      • Philadelphia Phillies
      • Washington Nationals
    • NL Central
      • Chicago Cubs
      • Cincinnati Reds
      • Milwaukee Brewers
      • Pittsburgh Pirates
      • St. Louis Cardinals
    • NL West
      • Arizona Diamondbacks
      • Colorado Rockies
      • Los Angeles Dodgers
      • San Diego Padres
      • San Francisco Giants
  • About
    • MLB Trade Rumors
    • Tim Dierkes
    • Writing team
    • Advertise
    • Archives
  • Contact
  • Tools
    • 2021-22 MLB Free Agent Tracker
    • 2021-22 MLB Free Agent List
    • 2022-23 MLB Free Agent List
    • Top 50 Free Agents
    • Projected Arbitration Salaries For 2022
    • Transaction Tracker
    • Extension Tracker
    • Arbitration Tracker
    • Agency Database
  • NBA/NFL/NHL
    • Hoops Rumors
    • Pro Football Rumors
    • Pro Hockey Rumors
  • App
  • Chats
Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Orioles Sign Eric Young Jr.

By Steve Adams | February 12, 2019 at 10:01am CDT

TODAY: The O’s have announced the signing.

YESTERDAY: The Orioles have agreed to a minor league contract with outfielder Eric Young Jr. and invited him to Major League Spring Training, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com reports (via Twitter).

Young, now 33 years old, spent the 2017-18 seasons with the Angels but, after a solid run in 2017, saw his offensive output crater in 2018. Overall, he hit a combined .233/.293/.361 with five homers, nine doubles, a pair of triples and 17 steals through 242 plate appearances with the Halos. Young paced the National League with 46 stolen bases back in 2013 as a member of the Rockies, and he doesn’t look to have lost much of a step, as his sprint speed of 29.0 feet per second (via Statcast) still ranked in the 91st percentile of big leaguers.

Baltimore currently projects to have Trey Mancini, Cedric Mullins and DJ Stewart line up as the primary outfielders, with Mark Trumbo, Joey Rickard, Austin Hays, Anthony Santander and Rule 5 pick Drew Jackson all potentially factoring into the mix as well. Young, though, would bring an element of speed to the O’s that is largely lacking outside of Mullins and infielder Jonathan Villar, so perhaps that’ll hold some appeal to the Orioles’ new leadership as Young vies for a bench job this spring.

Share 0 Retweet 26 Send via email0

Baltimore Orioles Transactions Eric Young, Jr.

Central Notes: Ventura, Goldschmidt, Taillon
Main
Jacob deGrom Puts Opening Day Deadline On Contract Talks
View Comments (38)

Comments

  1. HalosHeavenJJ

    3 years ago

    You won’t find a nicer, classier guy. Best of luck to EYJ. Hope he gets plenty of MLB time.

    Reply
    • SashaBanksFan

      3 years ago

      Agreed!

      Reply
  2. SabrinasDaddy

    3 years ago

    I believe this is the first signing for Baltimore this offseason…

    Reply
    • FromTheJuicingEra

      3 years ago

      They signed starting pitcher Nate Karns a couple of days ago.

      Reply
    • ln13

      3 years ago

      This is their fifth minor league contract. Karns has gotten the only major league deal:

      https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2019-mlb-free-agent-tracker/team-3

      Reply
  3. jbigz12

    3 years ago

    Having Villar or Mullins alone is typically 10x the speed the orioles typically have on the roster.

    Reply
    • jbigz12

      3 years ago

      Richie Martin will also make the team. The 3 of them together is the fastest orioles team we’ve seen in decades.

      Reply
      • stretcharmstrong1

        3 years ago

        Fastest to 100 L’s?

        Reply
        • jbigz12

          3 years ago

          Would be hard to top last years pace. Depending on when/if we deal away all our talent. Cobb, Buddy, Givens, Bleier. All four of them could conceivably be traded. If that happens it’ll be extra ugly and I could honestly see us match the whatever year it was in the 2000’s tigers. But I think they’ll stick around long enough for us to win too many games to make that happen.

  4. Marc Pepin

    3 years ago

    More like Eric OLD Jr.!

    Reply
    • jmaggio76

      3 years ago

      don’t quit your day job there, princess

      Reply
  5. david klein

    3 years ago

    Slight correction Young led the nl in stolen bases playing for the Rockies and Mets that year. I believe he started everyday in LF for the Mets that year.

    Reply
  6. 22Leo

    3 years ago

    It’s a good thing minor league contracts are so interesting because they are dominating the MLB off-season news so far.

    Reply
  7. Dave4585

    3 years ago

    Remember him on the Mets, solid utility guy

    Reply
  8. bravesfan

    3 years ago

    Some people have a better skill at staying in the league than the actual skill of playing in the league.

    Reply
    • dimitrios in la

      3 years ago

      That is well said.

      Reply
  9. Christopher_Oriole

    3 years ago

    Can he still play 2B? Maybe that’s the plan for him?

    Reply
    • GoRav114

      3 years ago

      Nah, Villar is the starting 2nd baseman and they are loaded on infielders whereas the roster is short on major league outfielders.

      Reply
      • dimitrios in la

        3 years ago

        Villar not officially starting second baseman but is the presumptive favorite.

        Reply
        • jbigz12

          3 years ago

          Villar is our 2b or possibly SS. He’s significantly better at 2b so I cannot imagine that’s not where he ends up unless they don’t think Richie Martin is ready to play SS in the bigs. He’ll 100% be the guy at one of those two spots. Realistically he’s the only infielder we have who can be expected to produce over 2 WAR. Posssibly Mancini if we move him back to 1B as well.

        • dimitrios in la

          3 years ago

          Villar makes a lot more sense at 2B to me too, but that’s not always been the consensus. I don’t love Mancini in LF either (don’t hate him as much as most) but until someone takes that spot and forces him to 1B/DH he’ll see at bats there.

        • Christopher_Oriole

          3 years ago

          Or the Orioles find a way to get Chris Davis off first base so Mancini can play his true position.

          Could Davis move to third and not be absolutely worse than he is?

    • angels fan

      3 years ago

      No he can’t

      Reply
  10. Oxford Karma

    3 years ago

    The orioles have a whole groupie of 4th and 5th outfielders. Not one of those guys could crack the starting lineup on about 15 teams. They should sign Adam Jones.

    Reply
    • jbigz12

      3 years ago

      We are the worst team in baseball. Saying none of our guys could start on half the teams in baseball would be a complement. There’s no reason for us to bring Jones back at all. He could serve as a mentor I guess but he’d have to play LF for us because we already have Trumbo penciled in RF. I really don’t care if he’s back or not because Mullins is our CF and Jones is no longer capable out there anyway. We’ll have Diaz, Hays, and Stewart all readily available at some point this year too so unless Jones can’t find himself a deal elsewhere I don’t think it’ll be baltimore.

      Reply
  11. fomeols

    3 years ago

    If Mancini is the starting leftfielder for the Orioles this season, it is no exaggeration to say that somebody needs to be fired. It is impossible that none of the available candidates offers less than Mancini, who should be first base, DH, or nothing.

    Reply
    • jbigz12

      3 years ago

      Mancini is our best internal candidate for 1B long term. There’s no reason to stick him in LF again. He can’t run and he can’t throw, we already knew that. IF trumbo and Davis were productive it might make a difference but Davis is terrible. Play DJ stewart in the OF until Diaz and Hays are ready to go. Have mancini man 1B and let Trumbo play RF/DH and Davis can alternate between 1B and DH if he recaptures any of his old form. If not release him and move on. Davis really isn’t blocking any younger player right now if he’s at DH but he soon will when Mountcastle/Diaz/Hays are ready, There’s no reason to keep him if he’s 2018 Davis, the money is already thrown in the trash. We’ll at least get a look at Sisco/Wynns, Stewart, Martin/Jackson, and Mullins in the first half of 2019 to see what we have.

      Reply
  12. Rick Whisner

    3 years ago

    What’s going on with Adam Jones

    Reply
  13. hingalou

    3 years ago

    He has a sprint speed of 29.0 ft/s, this is how that compares to some of the fastest Orioles: Mullins (29.3), Wilkerson (29.0), Peterson (28.4). Surprisingly, Villar is shown as 27.7, but he manages to average about 40 steals in a full season.

    Reply
    • jbigz12

      3 years ago

      Raw speed will steal you some bags but as you can see from that it’s not the only thing. Plenty of fast guys out there who don’t get a proper jump nor recognize the right time to go.

      Reply
      • hingalou

        3 years ago

        Villar is fun to watch on the bags, I hope he can give Mullins a few tips on getting a proper jump (2-for-5 in stolen bases in 2018). I’d like to see Mullins compete with Villar for most stolen bases on the team this year.

        Reply
  14. joeyrocafella

    3 years ago

    EYJ is a very solid player and a good guy. Nice signing

    Reply
  15. tac3

    3 years ago

    Few … I’m glad for the Orioles franchise, that takes the sting out of losing Machado.

    Reply
  16. padresfanaticfan

    3 years ago

    Thoughts and prayers

    Reply
  17. HaloHonk4Life

    3 years ago

    Dude gives the bubble gum a work out

    Reply
  18. chri

    3 years ago

    dude won the NL SB title back in 2013 because Everth Cabrera got caught juicing, also f-ed up Tim Hudson’s ankle that same year.

    Reply
  19. bobtillman

    3 years ago

    Villar’s kind of under-rated; not a bad player at all. And Boom-Boom has no more business in LF than I do as head of the Vatican State; that said, there’s worst 1B-men than Boom-Boom.

    Elias has been somewhat slow-moving, with ownership being partly to blame. You can’t rebuild scouting/ minor league systems beginning in December; everybody good has already got a job by then.

    The O’s are probably best served by biting the bullet, and pre-paying those ridiculous deferrals they owe Davis and Cobb (about 60M, if memory serves), and adding that to this year’s payroll expenditure. That doesn’t leave a lot of room, but it doesn’t kamikaze future efforts, as those deferrals do now.

    It’s a great, proud franchise. Like Bob Costas, I grew up with a dad who told me to watch the O’s; “THEY know how to play the game”. Kinda sad to see.

    Reply
  20. tallyosfan

    3 years ago

    As an Os fan I’ll check back in a few years and see where they are unless they get new owners then I’ll be excited

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Please login to leave a reply.
Log in Register

ad: 300x250_1_MLB

    Top Stories

    Tigers Fire General Manager Al Avila

    Matt Carpenter Expected To Miss 6-8 Weeks With Foot Fracture

    Braves Select Top Prospect Vaughn Grissom, Activate Kirby Yates

    2022-23 MLB Free Agent Power Rankings: August Edition

    Tim Anderson Out 4-6 Weeks Due To Torn Ligament In Hand

    Blue Jays Sign Jackie Bradley Jr., Designate Matt Peacock

    Chris Sale Fractures Wrist, Will Miss Remainder Of Season

    Cubs To Release Jason Heyward At End Of Season

    Cubs Claim Franmil Reyes From Guardians

    Fernando Tatis Jr. To Begin Rehab Assignment

    Rockies Claim Dinelson Lamet, Designate Ashton Goudeau

    Cubs Release Andrelton Simmons

    Alex Kirilloff To Undergo Season-Ending Surgery

    Guardians Designate Franmil Reyes For Assignment

    Justin Verlander Reaches 130 Innings Pitched, Vests 2023 Player Option

    Red Sox Release Jackie Bradley Jr.

    Phillies Release Didi Gregorius

    Vin Scully Passes Away

    Padres Acquire Juan Soto, Josh Bell; C.J. Abrams, MacKenzie Gore, Luke Voit Among Six Players Back To Nationals

    Braves To Acquire Raisel Iglesias

    Recent

    Nationals Outright Donovan Casey

    Mariners Reinstate Julio Rodriguez, Designate Luis Torrens

    Rockies To Select Wynton Bernard

    Previewing Upcoming Club Option Decisions: National League

    Braves Place Max Fried On Concussion-Related Injured List

    Injury Notes: Harper, Schwarber, Daza, Harris, Canterino

    Mets Reinstate Dominic Smith From 10-Day IL, Option Him To Triple-A

    Active MLB Players Who Have Received A Qualifying Offer

    A’s Release Jed Lowrie

    Tigers To Select Daniel Norris

    MLBTR Newsletter - Hot stove highlights in your inbox, five days a week

    Latest Rumors & News

    Latest Rumors & News

    • Cubs Decline To Trade Contreras, Happ
    • Giants Keep Rodon, Pederson
    Trade Rumors App for iOS and Android

    MLBTR Features

    MLBTR Features

    • Go Ad-Free
    • MLB Player Chats
    • 2021-22 MLB Free Agent Tracker
    • 2021-22 MLB Free Agent List
    • Top 50 Free Agents
    • 2022-23 MLB Free Agent List
    • Projected Arbitration Salaries For 2022
    • Transaction Tracker
    • Extension Tracker
    • Agency Database
    • MLBTR On Twitter
    • MLBTR On Facebook
    • Team Facebook Pages
    • How To Set Up Notifications For Breaking News
    • Hoops Rumors
    • Pro Football Rumors
    • Pro Hockey Rumors

    Rumors By Team

    • Angels Rumors
    • Astros Rumors
    • Athletics Rumors
    • Blue Jays Rumors
    • Braves Rumors
    • Brewers Rumors
    • Cardinals Rumors
    • Cubs Rumors
    • Diamondbacks Rumors
    • Dodgers Rumors
    • Giants Rumors
    • Guardians Rumors
    • Mariners Rumors
    • Marlins Rumors
    • Mets Rumors
    • Nationals Rumors
    • Orioles Rumors
    • Padres Rumors
    • Phillies Rumors
    • Pirates Rumors
    • Rangers Rumors
    • Rays Rumors
    • Red Sox Rumors
    • Reds Rumors
    • Rockies Rumors
    • Royals Rumors
    • Tigers Rumors
    • Twins Rumors
    • White Sox Rumors
    • Yankees Rumors

    ad: 160x600_MLB

    Navigation

    • Sitemap
    • Archives
    • Feeds by Team

    MLBTR INFO

    • Advertise
    • About
    • Commenting Policy
    • Privacy Policy

    Connect

    • Contact Us
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • RSS Feed

    MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

    hide arrowsFOX Sports Engage Network scroll to top
    Close

    Desktop Version | Switch To Mobile Version