Well, Cubs fans have been waiting for this move for the past week or so and it appears as though they’re getting their wish. Left-handed hitting first baseman and corner outfielder Jared Young has been spotted outside of Wrigley Field Tuesday afternoon and it’s pretty safe bet that he’ll be added to the team’s active roster ahead of their series opener against the Philadelphia Phillies.
Young, 27, has been tearing it up at Triple-A with the Iowa Cubs and with the recent struggles of Trey Mancini it looks like the Cubs are giving the left-handed hitter another shot in the majors. Young was called up to the Cubs last September and played in six games during his first stint in the big leagues.
Young has slashed .326/.426/.605 in 52 games with the Iowa Cubs this season. He barely played during the month of April, but ever since Matt Mervis was called up in May, Young was inserted back in the lineup as a regular and he’s been on fire ever since.
Young has been incredible during the month of June, posting a 1.278 OPS in 21 games. The left-handed hitter has crushed 13 home runs with 45 RBI, while drawing 29 walks to 43 strikeouts.
As far as how Young will be used? Well, it’s not exactly clear. Mike Tauchman has been great in center field and at the top of the Cubs batting order, which has resulted in Cody Bellinger becoming the primary first baseman. At this point Young will most likely just be the backup at first when Bellinger needs a day off and he could also be used as the DH when Christopher Morel or Miguel Amaya are either in the field or have a day off themselves.
Young has extreme splits, posting a 1.150 OPS against right-handed pitchers, while he’s been bad against lefties, only recording a .620 OPS against them in Triple-A this year.
In his six games with the Cubs at the end of the 2022 season, he went 5-for-19, with a pair of doubles, three walks and seven strikeouts.
I think the ideal scenario at least in the short term to see if Young can stick around is having him and Trey Mancini take up most of the DH at-bats. Mancini has been solid against left-handed pitching. However, that also means Amaya will need more time behind the plate because you still want his bat in the lineup and then David Ross would once again have to mix in Morel around the field. Or who knows, maybe Mancini’s role ends up being extremely reduced in the coming weeks.
