Red Sox: What is Chris Young’s role when he returns?
By Sean Penney
The Boston Red Sox should get outfielder Chris Young back this week, but his role is no longer as clear as it was before he was sidelined by injury.
Chris Young is expected to return to the Boston Red Sox roster this week, possibly as soon as Monday when the team heads to Tampa Bay for a series with the Rays.
The 32-year old outfielder has been sidelined with a hamstring strain for nearly two months, but seems on the verge of returning following a seven-game rehab stint in Triple A-Pawtucket. Young went a mere 5-for-23 at the plate for the PawSox, but as long as his hamstring holds up then he’ll be deemed ready for activation from the disabled list.
The Red Sox could certainly use the added depth off their bench, but changes the team has made in the outfield since Young went down with the injury raises questions about how he’ll be utilized.
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His role was clear when the season started – Young would start in left field whenever there was a left-handed starter on the mound, against whom he owns a .340 batting average and 1.042 OPS this season. The Red Sox signed Young for his ability to mash lefties, so manager John Farrell has used any opportunity he could find to put his bat in the lineup against south paws. Even if the team wasn’t facing a lefty starter, there was a solid chance of seeing Young pinch-hit if a lefty reliever took the mound, often at the expense of Travis Shaw.
So, when Young returns to the active roster will he step back into the same role as the right-handed half of a left field platoon? Don’t count on it.
The problem for Young is that the Red Sox have moved on to hot-shot prospect Andrew Benintendi as their everyday left fielder. The 22-year old bats left-handed, but that doesn’t mean he’s a candidate to be platooned with Young. Benintendi is hitting .308 against lefties so far in his major league career. Granted, that’s in only 14 plate appearances, but he has a track record of success in the minors against lefties, hitting .330 with a .929 OPS against them in 51 games through stops in High-A Salem and Double-A Portland.
Based on his minor league numbers, Benintendi may actually be better when lacking the platoon advantage. Young may still be the better hitter against lefties, especially in the power department, but that doesn’t mean the Red Sox should bench the rookie for him. Benintendi has a bright future with this franchise. How do you tell this kid that he doesn’t get to face lefties anymore, despite his success against them? He needs to remain the primary left fielder against all types of pitchers in order to properly develop.
Young will still get his chances against lefties, but those opportunities will be spread out among the three outfield spots rather than a strict platoon.
"“If it’s a day to give a breather to a guy in the outfield and take advantage of the right-hander against a left-handed pitcher, that’s a possibility,” Farrell told reporters this weekend, per the Providence Journal’s Tim Britton. “I will say this: Andrew Benintendi has done a hell of a job. I don’t want to say it would be strictly a platoon when Chris comes back. I don’t want to go there.”"
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Farrell went on to explain that Young would be used to give the occasional day off to all three of the team’s starting outfielders. He won’t necessarily start against ever lefty, while the starts he does get won’t always be at the expense of Benintendi.
One would imagine that the Red Sox won’t want to take MVP candidate Mookie Betts out of the lineup, but if he needs a break during the dog days of summer then having Young back on the roster makes it easier to give Betts a day off. Both Betts and Benintendi are more than capable of handling center field if Jackie Bradley needs to rest.
The most likely candidate to need some extra rest down the stretch would be the 40-year old David Ortiz. While Big Papi has actually performed quite well against lefties this year, hitting .324 against them, it still seems likely any days off he gets will come against a tough lefty. That would give Young the chance to pick up some additional at-bats as a designated hitter.
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The opportunities may be fewer and further between for Young now that Benintendi has burst onto the big league stage, but his return gives the Red Sox a quality bat on the bench that could prove valuable down the stretch.