The Cardinals announced that infielder/outfielder Jared Young has been placed on outright waivers. That opens up a spot on their 40-man roster for outfielder Victor Scott II.
Young, 28, was claimed off waivers out of the division-rival Cubs organization back in November. A 15th-round pick in 2017, he’s logged big league time in each of the past two seasons with Chicago, albeit in limited fashion. He’s appeared in just 22 games and tallied 69 plate appearances, hitting .210/.290/.435 in his brief cups of coffee at the MLB level.
Those numbers don’t stand out, nor do the results from Young’s first two seasons at the Triple-A level, but he laid waste to opposing pitchers with Triple-A Iowa last season in his third run through that level. In 90 games and 376 plate appearances, Young turned in a stout .310/.417/.577 batting line with 21 homers, a huge 13.3% walk rate and a 22.3% strikeout rate. He collected only three hits in 45 plate appearances this spring, but last year’s upper-minors results are genuinely intriguing.
Young has spent notable time at first base, second base, third base and in both outfield corners on the defensive side of things. The bulk of that time has come at first base and in left field, but any team that places a claim or looks to swing a minor trade to pick him up would be adding a lefty bat with some decent versatility. Young has a pair of minor league options remaining as well, which could add to his appeal. The outright waiver process lasts 48 hours, so Young should know relatively soon whether he’ll head to another club’s 40-man roster or stick with the Cardinals and be assigned outright to Triple-A Memphis.
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