The Mariners announced today that they are reinstating Bryce Miller ahead of today’s game to start against the Twins, but the most exciting news is they are calling up infielder Cole Young, who will start in today’s game.
The time has officially come. Long have been the days where Mariner fans have looked on top prospect rankings around the internet only to see Cole Young’s once clean shaven face atop the leaderboards. The young infielder has been the heir-apparent to the second base job for years at this point, and upon making his debut, his (hopefully) lengthy tenure will officially begin.
Young started off the year in Tacoma rather slowly, however a significant portion of his troubles could be drawn up to pure bad luck. He’d been hitting the ball hard, avoiding strikeouts, putting the ball in play, etc. and simply had nothing to show for it. After his slump worsened, however, Young concluded his first month of Triple-A in rough shape with nothing but encouraging K and BB rates to show for it. Not the end of the world, but certainly not what everyone was looking for.
Once the calendar flipped over to May, however, everything changed. Young has gone on an unconscious streak at the plate, utterly dominating Triple-A pitching and raising his season slash line from well below average to comfortably above average in the span of a few weeks. Let’s see just how much of a heater he’s been on.
3/28 – 4/30: .190/.320/.257
Truly a dreadful slashline any way you slice it.
5/1 – Present: .366/.467/.673
Pretty darn good if you ask me!
Some of the power numbers are somewhat inflated due to playing a few series on the road in ballparks that are closer to launch pads than baseball fields, but the counting stats are not what’s getting Young called up at this point. Young is hitting the ball harder than he has in the past while maintaining his excellent batted ball skills and disciplined approach. Walking more than you strike out in Triple-A is an incredibly hard feat to accomplish, but to do so at just 21 years of age is an entirely different kind of impressive.
If you aren’t familiar with Cole Young and his game, here’s what to expect: An above average or better glove at second base with a high OBP approach at the plate. He’s not going to produce a copious amount of pop with his bat, but he’s certainly not swinging a noodle, either. His wheels are solid if unspectacular. I wouldn’t expect him to be a major threat in the base stealing department, however he’ll still be an asset on the basepaths with his footspeed. He’s got range up the middle, a good arm for the right side of the infield, and he’s hit at every level he’s been at. It’s not the sexiest profile you’ll find down on the farm, but it might just be exactly what this team needs.
Cole Young. Now officially a Seattle Mariner.
To make room for Young on the 40-man roster, reliever Will Klein was DFA’d. Klein has tantalizing stuff, but his command problems have persisted so far in Tacoma; hopefully he’ll clear waivers and be able to remain with the organization, because there’s still immense upside in the nasty stuff from the 6’5” hurler if he can clean up his walks.
Leo Rivas was optioned to Tacoma to make room for Young on the 25-man roster, as was reliever Casey Legumina, the latest victim of the Mariners’ late-innings bullpen collapse.
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