Home » 2013 Spring Training » Chris Young Opts Out of Nationals Contract
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March 26, 2013 2013 Spring Training Joe Janish

Chris Young Opts Out of Nationals Contract

Former Mets pitcher Chris Young has exercised his option to decline an assignment to the minor leagues, and is now a free agent.

Should the Mets — who have lost Johan Santana from the starting rotation, and now have a pain in the neck from Shaun Marcum — bring Young back to Flushing? Would he want to return?

Post your thoughts in the comments.

Joe Janish began MetsToday in 2005 to provide the unique perspective of a high-level player and coach -- he earned NCAA D-1 All-American honors as a catcher and coached several players who went on to play pro ball. As a result his posts often include mechanical evaluations, scout-like analysis, and opinions that go beyond the numbers. Follow Joe's baseball tips on Twitter at @onbaseball and at the On Baseball Google Plus page.
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  1. Walnutz15 March 26, 2013 at 10:26 am
    Like Johan, this Marcum situation is another one suited more toward….”keep him out early, in order to at least have him around for the summer months”.

    If those plans fail, then I’m not really sure what value either will provide to the 2013 Mets….even in a “trade ’em off for anything you can get as the team slides in the 2nd half” capacity.

    Marcum just seems like another guy who’s always going to have nagging injuries. I was intrigued by the prospect of a “healthy Marcum” when he was signed – but never expected him to be that version, especially since he decided to sign here….for a guaranteed $4MM + incentives.

    ……..literally no one else must have been interested at that point.

    Hopefully, he’s able to pitch by May – if not earlier.

    FWIW – I have no problems with Jeremy Hefner at the back-end of that rotation. When you start to hear names like the immortal Aaron Laffey and “Mighty” Chris Young (5 innings, max) – etc. – he looks even more attractive.

    The guy was solid last year, with 8 Quality Starts out of the 13 (realistically, 12 – since he had to continue a start where there was a ridiculously long rain delay — then came back out to get bombed) he was afforded. I’ll take that, definitely as a sign that he earned a more prolonged look…..something the Mets haven’t liked to follow-through on with “on the bubble”-type players.

    They’ve done far worse than Hefner in recent year – with some of the longer-term “auditions” they’ve doled out.

  2. DaveSchneck March 26, 2013 at 11:13 am
    Joe,
    Chris Young is the ultimate injury risk. Who would hav thought that he would be looked to as a late spring solution to stabilize the starting staff, the team’s “strength” this year. It just goes to show how fleeting pitching is. Given that Santana may be done, and Marcum is going to be unreliable at best, and Mejia is now down indefinitely, the decision is simple – add Wheeler to the opening day staff or convince Young to return. I have no problem with Hefner as the 5th starter, but the notion of Gee-Hefner-Laffey is not a good one.
  3. argonbunnies March 26, 2013 at 12:14 pm
    What we really need is a guy who can start on short notice, and relieve during the times when all the other starters are healthy.

    Anyone know Tim Wakefield’s number?

    Young probably shouldn’t accept a job from a team that wants to replace him ASAP unless he has no other options. Probably best for both parties to wait for more news on Marcum’s neck.

  4. Dan B March 26, 2013 at 2:01 pm
    Do you think someone in the Met’s front office actually had to say the phrase, “do you think we should call Chris Young?” That has to be a really tough thing to say out loud this early in the season.
  5. Mike Kelm March 27, 2013 at 10:19 am
    Young’s Velocity is way down (not that he ever had much to begin with) but his fastball with the Nats was topping out at 82-83 MPH. He is a very crafty pitcher, but has limited stamina, only completing 115 innings in 20 starts last season, for an average of less tha 6 innings per start. These two facts lead me to believe that he is likely to get through a rotation once, but the second time around get battered pretty good and drain what is a questionable bullpen. While I am not a huge Hefner or McHugh fan, I think we would be best served to pass on the return of Young.
    • Joe Janish March 27, 2013 at 2:46 pm
      Mike, echoing Steven’s reply below, thanks for the velocity info. Agreed, I don’t see the point in obtaining an older, more expensive, more fragile version of Jeremy Hefner.
  6. Steven A March 27, 2013 at 1:24 pm
    Thank you Mike Kelm for the information about his velocity this spring. I think that is decisive. If he cant get it up to 85-86 then the low ERA in Spring is more likely due to the fact that the SPring outings tend to be short and against lesser line-ups. If Young is willing to take a minor league contract, fine, but otherwise we need to pass.
  7. Joe March 27, 2013 at 9:27 pm
    No.

    Marcum is scheduled to start Game Six. We already have one Young, apparently. No need for two. I’m with W. on Hefner. Promising back-end guy. Someone else has to step up though.