Next stop for Jared Young: New York City.
The New York Mets announced Monday they’ve signed the 29-year-old veteran infielder from Prince George to a one-year contract.
Reached at his home in Scottsdale, Ariz., he says he’s relieved to have a new contract to resume his baseball career and is looking forward to playing under the microscope that comes with being a professional athlete in New York.
“It’s exciting, obviously I wanted to get it done as soon as possible, so to get it done before Christmas and before the New Year is really nice,” said Young. “So now I kind of know where I’m going I can start making plans.
“There’s not too many teams bigger than them. It’s really humbling and an awesome opportunity for me. It makes it easier when you know where you’re going and you have a goal in mind.”
Young had other offers as a free agents but decided to sign with the Mets. According to The Associated Press the deal will pay him a major league salary of $1.15 million or $425,000 if he's playing in the minors.
“You’ve got to weigh the options and choose the one that’s best for your career,” he said.
Young is looking forward to resuming his major league career after a productive 2024 season split between the triple-A Memphis Redbirds, the top farm team of the St. Louis Cardinals, and the Doosan Bears of the Korean Baseball Organization.
The left-handed hitter played 22 major league games with the Chicago Cubs in 2022 and 2023 and has a career .210 batting average with two home runs, eight RBIs, seven extra-base hits and a .725 OPS (on-base percentage plus slugging percentage).
Young was selected by the Cubs in the 15th round of the 2017 amateur draft and rapidly climbed the ranks to become an everyday player at the triple-A level. His numbers have been trending upwards over the past two seasons.
In 2023 he hit .310, had a .417 slugging average and .557 on-base percentage in 90 games with the Iowa Cubs. Claimed off waivers by the Cardinals last winter, Young continued to deliver at the plate, posting a .285/.411/.506 slash line with 11 home runs before the Cardinals released him in July.
“They’re not going to give (a contract) to you if you don’t deserve it, and I’ve earned it,” said Young. “I’m 29 years old now, I’ve played baseball for a while now and I think some of my best baseball is ahead of me and I believe the Mets do too, so I think it works out great.”
He went to Korea and made an immediate impact with the Bears, hitting .326 with 10 homers, 39 RBIs with a 1.080 OPS, to lead Doosan into the playoffs. He quickly became a fan favourite with Bears fans and living in the capital Seoul, a city of nearly 10 million, gave him a taste of what it will be like playing in front of a New York crowd.
“Seoul is a great city, it’s big, it’s massive, a lot of fans, and I’m sure it will be similar,” said Young. “There will obviously be differences – including the fact I speak the language – that’ll make a big difference, but I’m sure there will also be similarities.”
In New York, Young could add depth at first base with starter Pete Alonso potentially moving to another team as a free agent.
Young brings defensive versatility. He split last season between third base and the corners in the outfield and also played two games at first.
“It definitely helps, it can keep you in the lineup,” he said. “There’s definitely some roles there for a player who can play multiple positions and I take a lot of pride in that the last two years to get myself on the field.
“You have to figure out which kind of baseball player you’re going to be and try and get the best at that. Being able to play multiple positions instead of being an every day guy at one, this is my niche and I’m excited to do it.”
All 12 of Young's major league starts with the Cubs were at first base. As dependable as he is on defence, Young’s bat did the talking with the Mets.
“It’s no secret that I’m probably a bat-first player, but that’s not all it takes, unfortunately to play at the highest level,” Young said. “You’ve got to take pride in all the things you do in baseball but I’m definitely going to make my noise at the plate.”
The Mets rocked the sporting world Dec. 11 when they signed free agent outfielder Juan Sota from the Yankees for a record-breaking $765 million 15-year contract. Worth an average $53.6 million, it’s the richest deal every awarded to an athlete.
The Mets ended the season with a team payroll of $356.2 million, the highest in MLB.
“It’ll be good, there will be a lot of media,” said Young. “You want to be around the best players in the world and there’s going to be an opportunity to be the best.”
