Eric Young (baseball player)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

**Eric Young**
Major League Baseball debut
Free Agent — No. --
Left field
Bats: Right	Throws: Right
July 30, 1992 for the Los Angeles Dodgers
Selected MLB statistics (through 2006)
Batting average	.283
Home runs	79
OBP	.359
Former teams
Los Angeles Dodgers (1992, 1997-1999) Colorado Rockies (1993-1997) Chicago Cubs (2000-2001) Milwaukee Brewers (2002-2003) San Francisco Giants (2003) Texas Rangers (2004, 2006) San Diego Padres (2005-2006)

Eric Orlando Young (born May 18, 1967 in New Brunswick, New Jersey) is a second baseman and left fielder in Major League Baseball. He played college baseball for Rutgers University.

Eric Young was in his prime in the mid-1990s. One of the original Colorado Rockies, he hit a home run in the Rockies' first ever home at-bat. He helped Colorado to its only post-season appearance in 1995, which they lost. His best seasons came with the Rockies where he was an All-Star and a Silver Slugger award in 1996 at second base, when he hit .324, with 8 home runs, 74 RBIs and 53 stolen bases, still a Rockies record. He is also the Rockies career leader in stolen bases and is in the top 10 in many other offensive categories. In 1997 fan favorite Young was traded back to Los Angeles for pitcher Pedro Astacio. While in Los Angeles during 1998-1999 he continued his consistency by stealing bases and hitting for solid averages. In the 1990s Young was one of the top base stealers in the major leagues.

[edit] 2000-present

Eric Young was traded by the Dodgers to the Cubs in 1999. In 2000 he had one of his best seasons, hitting .297 with 6 home runs, 98 runs, and an impressive 54 steals. In 2001 he enjoyed a similar season. In January of 2002 he signed as a free agent with the Milwaukee Brewers. In 2003 he hit 15 home runs, a career high almost doubling his previous total of 8. While with the Texas Rangers and San Diego Padres, he was mainly used as a pinch runner. Young's 463 career stolen bases rank third out of all active players. He trails only Kenny Lofton (581) and Barry Bonds (506). On August 1, 2006, Eric Young was released by the San Diego Padres. He was subsequently reacquired by the Rangers on August 11, and called up to the Rangers on August 25.

Eric's son, Eric Young, Jr., is now following in his father's footsteps, as he is a member of the Colorado Rockies organization of the MLB. The son graduated from Piscataway Township High School in 2003 and continued playing through college.