Chris Young has opted out of his contract with the Washington Nationals and there is the possibility that Young could return to the Mets. Let’s take a look at the situation.
Washington Nationals Perspective:
According to this Washington Post article, Johnson will be sad to Young leave. Young was the depth behind the starting five for the Nationals being the first one to step in if anything goes wrong with that fantastic rotation. Young also likes the Nationals organization (how can you not from the player perspective). There is the possibility for another deal to be worked out.
New York Mets Perspective:
Young and his agents say that he has possibilities for a major league spot, but the only team that is actually linked to him is his former club, the New York Mets, who had an evaluator at his last game. The Mets are looking for a starting pitcher to step in for Santana before Wheeler comes in and with this morning’s news that Mejia is out for 6 weeks and that Marcum will be missing his next start, there is some starter panic in Mets land. Young looks more like a solution everyday.
What Will Happen?
Young had a very impressive Spring. He’s made 4 starts while pitching 16.0 innings and allowing only 4 ER. His last 9 innings have apparently been very impressive according to Johnson and the rest of the Nationals camp.
However, since we’re the home of Chris Young for the last two years, we know the full story. Young is a control pitcher will make quality starts for the ball club. His pitch count is low, so if he starts off rocky, or throws a lot of pitches, he’ll be out by the 5th inning, not making a quality start and will then put a strain on the bullpen. As a temporary hold over in the rotation, I’m for him, particularly because he’s better than some of the internal options the Mets have (Hefner).
We’ll see what happens. Young has two goals. He wants to make a major league roster (advantage Mets) but he wants to stay with the Nationals and work something out creatively (advantage Nationals).
