Jim Salisbury of Comcast SportsNet is reporting that the Phillies are in serious pursuit of free agent outfielder Delmon Young, formerly of the Tigers.
Salisbury quoted Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. as saying "We've kicked around a lot of stuff. He's among them," when asked about the Phillies interest in signing Young.
Last season with Detroit, Young hit 18-74-.267/.296/.411 in 151 games. The majority of those games, Young served as a designated hitter and only played in the outfield in 29 games with Detroit. Young garnered attention when he hit .353 in the ALCS against the Yankees and .357 against San Francisco in the World Series.
After the season, Young underwent surgery in November to remove bone spurs from his ankle, but reports are that he'll be ready for full activities by the opening of spring training. The injury hampered Young for much of last season.
Young missed time last season when he was suspended by Major League Baseball for yelling anti-Semitic statements while intoxicated in New York City last April. Besides serving the suspension, Young apologized and underwent counseling for the issue.
One major drawback is Young's lack of defensive skills in the outfield. His career fielding percentage in left field in .974, compared to the major league average of .984 for left fielders. Young's lack of conditioning has been cited as one reason for his defensive struggles.
For his career, Young is a .284 hitter and averages 16 home runs for every 162 games he plays. He has played for Tampa Bay, Minnesota and Detroit in his seven seasons in the majors, finishing second in American League Rookie of the Year voting in 2007 and tenth in AL MVP voting in 2010 when he set career-highs with 21 home runs and 112 RBI.
While he has played his entire career in the American League, Young has a lifetime batting line of 8-54-.336/.356/.488 in 89 career Interleague games.
Delmon Young's career stats
| Year |
Team |
G |
AB |
R |
H |
2B |
3B |
HR |
RBI |
BB |
SO |
BA |
OBP |
SLG |
| 2006 |
Tampa
Bay |
30 |
126 |
16 |
40 |
9 |
1 |
3 |
10 |
1 |
24 |
.317 |
.336 |
.476 |
| 2007 |
Tampa
Bay |
162 |
645 |
65 |
186 |
38 |
0 |
13 |
93 |
26 |
127 |
.288 |
.316 |
.408 |
| 2008 |
Minnesota |
152 |
575 |
80 |
167 |
28 |
4 |
10 |
69 |
35 |
105 |
.290 |
.336 |
.405 |
| 2009 |
Minnesota |
108 |
395 |
50 |
112 |
16 |
2 |
12 |
60 |
12 |
92 |
.284 |
.308 |
.425 |
| 2010 |
Minnesota |
153 |
570 |
77 |
170 |
46 |
1 |
21 |
112 |
28 |
81 |
.298 |
.333 |
.493 |
| 2011 |
Minnesota |
84 |
305 |
26 |
81 |
16 |
0 |
4 |
32 |
18 |
55 |
.266 |
.305 |
.357 |
| 2011 |
Detroit |
40 |
168 |
28 |
46 |
5 |
1 |
8 |
32 |
5 |
30 |
.274 |
.298 |
.458 |
| 2011 |
combined
stats |
124 |
473 |
54 |
127 |
21 |
1 |
12 |
64 |
23 |
85 |
.268 |
.302 |
.393 |
| 2012 |
Detroit |
151 |
574 |
54 |
153 |
27 |
1 |
18 |
74 |
20 |
112 |
.267 |
.296 |
.411 |
| 7
Years |
880 |
3358 |
396 |
955 |
185 |
10 |
89 |
482 |
145 |
626 |
.284 |
.317 |
.425 |